Summit County Public Health has shut down multiple businesses as it enforces the state’s stay-at-home order allowing only essential businesses to operate during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The closures include car washes, a fitness center, a college, a playground and retail businesses. The Beacon Journal obtained a list of the closures through a public records request.

The agency has received more than 400 complaints about businesses possibly in violation of the state order.

Earlier Friday, Summit County Public Health indicated there were vape shops that had been closed, with a total of 37 businesses closed so far.

That situation is now "in flux," according to the health department, with the vape shops not shown in the list of closings the health department released Friday afternoon.

As of Friday morning, the complaints included 27 car dealerships, 13 car washes, 57 food complaints, 13 golf courses and 330 others, mostly businesses, according to the health department.

Summit County Public Health Commissioner Donna Skoda said this week that per the state order, businesses can determine if they’re essential or not, and health districts were asked to do enforcement, along with police officers.

Messages were left seeking comments with each of the businesses on the health department’s list. And some businesses, including Valley Car Wash and Sally Beauty Supply, were cleared to continue operating after initially appearing on the shutdown list.

Successful reversals

Valley Car Wash owner Terry Schoen succeeded in getting a shutdown order for his business overturned after demonstrating to the health department that it serves an essential function and is in compliance with coronavirus safety guidelines.

"We're a touch-free, unstaffed facility," he said. "We did close our vacuums, so there's no contact with any equipment whatsoever. We have contracts with the city sewer and police departments to keep their vehicles running safe."

Schoen said the business’s position is that it falls under the same classification as auto repair facilities, which have been deemed essential under the state’s order.

"Having clean vehicles is an important part not only for keeping the automatic sensors clean but also the exterior of the vehicle clean and safe," he said.

Summit County Public Health Environmental Health Director Tonia Burford said in an email Friday night that if businesses such as Valley Car Wash meet an exception in the order and can operate safely, they can remain open.

Burford said Valley Car Wash serves an essential business or operation related to government and law enforcement.

"Law enforcement have communicated to us that they need these car washes to help ensure that bodily fluids are removed from their cars," Burford said.

Burford also said upon further review of the operations at Sally Beauty, which include curbside pickup and the sale of gloves and disinfectants, it was determined the company’s five area locations meet the criteria established to be an essential business.

Jeff Harkins, vice president of investor relations and strategic planning for Sally Beauty, said the company has closed all of its stores to customers but is allowing some to remain open with limited staff to do curbside orders and ship packages.

The stores also stock supplies, like gloves and masks, that are in demand right now and have completed orders to medical providers and the U.S. Postal Service, Harkins said.

The process

Burford said although the process varies from case to case, it starts with the department receiving a complaint from the public.

The department then usually makes a phone call to the business to "invite them to explain to us how they are essential or that they're not essential," Burford said.

Burford said sometimes the situation is resolved over the phone.

"We can come to the conclusion over the phone that they're not in compliance," she said.

But if the situation isn’t resolved, the department will make a site visit to the business. As of Friday morning, the department had made 72 site visits.

Burford said a health inspector will leave a copy of the order, which she said looks like an inspection sheet, and someone will return to check on their progress.

"To date, that's been pretty effective once we get that site visit," she said.

"We want to give them the opportunity to comply," she added.

The third step would be taking a business to court, although Burford said the health department isn’t at that point yet because the process has just started.

"For the most part, people have been very compliant once they get a visit from us or a call," she said.

The department has seven or eight health inspectors a day working on the compliance issues. Burford said they’d normally be doing restaurant or housing inspections, so "they're very familiar with compliance and getting compliance."

In some cases, businesses are considered essential but aren’t following public health guidelines to operate safely, such as maintaining social distancing with 6 feet between people.

Burford said the most common compliance issue so far has been line queuing in retail locations. The health department has given guidance and advice, including suggesting businesses place tape or other markers on the floor to ensure people are 6 feet from each other.

"I think a lot of people just think that people will automatically space themselves out 6 feet, but it really does help to tape the line and put X’s or something on the floor," she said.

The department also has been making sure businesses have a sanitizing policy and are following it and helping businesses space out their workspaces, from moving cubicles to moving desks.

Burford said the health department was working on additional cases Friday and expected the numbers to change, calling them "fluid."

Burford also reminded the public the health department responds to complaints, so if there’s a business someone is concerned about, they need to report it; otherwise, the health department won’t know about it.

Anyone with concerns about non-compliant facilities in Summit County can call the health department at 330-926-5795 or use its website — scph.org/contact — to report their concerns.

Burford said the "spirit of the order" is to have people stay at home unless they need something that’s essential.

"We're just asking that businesses be accommodating with the order and ... if they are essential and they have to stay open that they're doing the social distancing and the hand-washing, hand sanitizing and cleaning surfaces and to encourage hand-washing and to encourage people to not gather in groups," she said.

A Q&A from the health department about essential businesses is available at scph.org/covid-19; click on "Question about ‘essential’ businesses and services."

Beacon Journal reporter Jennifer Pignolet contributed to this report. Contact Beacon Journal reporter Emily Mills at emills@thebeaconjournal.com.