© Vickie Connor/The Desert Sun John's Restaurant owner George Argyros poses for a photo inside his restaurant on Wednesday, March 11, 2020 in Palm Desert, Calif.

April is typically one of the busiest times of the year to grab breakfast at John's Restaurant in Palm Desert. The counter-service spot fills up with some of the hundreds of thousands of tourists in town for festival season.

But this year, with the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and Stagecoach Country Music Festival postponed from April until October due to coronavirus concerns, owner George Argyros is anticipating a financial hit that could have long-term ramifications.

In addition to not seeing his usual April festival bump, Argyros is also losing out on a spot at the food court at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden after the BNP Paribas Open cancellation.

"It's going to have a negative effect," he said. "The summer's going to be very tough."

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Coachella, Stagecoach and the BNP Paribas Open draw hundreds of thousands of people to the Coachella Valley, and their spending fuels the local economy for months. Now businesses and workers who rely on the tourism economy are starting down unexpected fiscal challenges — and hoping that the communities they call home will come out to support them.

In Indio, Jim Babington of Neil's Lounge said while Coachella and Stagecoach provide a great bump in business, he's looking forward to hosting festivalgoers in October. The first weekend will be Oct. 9 to 11, followed by Oct. 16 to 18, with Stagecoach to be held Oct. 23 to 25.

"This virus is spread by large groups of people, and we're more concerned with the safety of our customers and the festivalgoers and our employees," he said. "Yes, we're going to lose revenue and income because we're very busy those three weekends. But we've got the same thing coming back in October."

He is concerned about how the lack of April festivals, held about a mile from his home at the Empire Polo Club, could hurt the hotel industry and the livelihoods of individual workers. A couple OF security guards that work for him also typically work for the festivals, he said.

"This year, they'll be working for me" at the lounge, he said.

© Vickie Connor/The Desert Sun John's Restaurant employees prepare and deliver food on Wednesday, March 11, 2020, in Palm Desert, Calif.

1 in 4 jobs linked to tourism

Several local tourism and economics experts could not provide data on how many residents have festival-related jobs. But overall, one in four jobs in the valley is linked to tourism, according to the Greater Palm Springs Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Josh Dunn is an Indio native who runs an independent graphic design business. He drives for Uber and Lyft to supplement his income. He's anticipating the loss of a few thousand dollars due to a decrease in travelers, who make up a majority of his passengers.

On Tuesday evening, two separate passengers offered Dunn $20 cash tips on the heels of the festival postponement news.

"We're just seeing the beginnings of how this is going to affect everyone across the board," he said.

The Greater Palm Springs Convention and Visitors Bureau said in 2017 that the BNP Paribas Open brought in $406 million to the valley. That same year, the Coachella and Stagecoach festivals drew more than 325,000 visitors, the report said, and had an economic impact that “far exceeded $403 million.”

Without the festivals, the Greater Palm Springs Convention and Visitors Bureau is investing $225,000 in a proactive marketing plan targeted toward the "drive market," that is, people within driving distance in Southern California, Nevada and Arizona.

They hope to persuade travelers who may be canceling flights, or families who may be looking to fill canceled school days, to visit the desert.

Tara Lazar, who founded the F10 Creative hospitality group that includes noted restaurants like Cheeky's and Mr.Lyon's, is optimistic that boosting drive-market tourism will pay off, similarly to how the region navigated the recession in 2008 with an influx of regional travelers.

"It's a prime time for regular vacationers who don't come here because the prices are so expensive (during festival season)," she said. "I have hope Palm Springs can make it."

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While April is peak season, the music festivals don't boost Palm Springs restaurants as much as those in other parts of the valley, she said. Festivalgoers who stay in Palm Springs hotels head to the festival grounds for most of the day — whereas families on a vacation to the area would be likely to eat out.

But some blows have already been delivered, especially to local catering companies: Lazar's F10 Catering business had about 60 events planned for Coachella that are no longer happening. Dozens of corporate events and private dinners have also been canceled, she said.

© Vickie Connor/The Desert Sun A sign for John's Restaurant in Palm Desert, Calif. sits outside of the building on Wednesday, March 11, 2020.

For a Palm Springs native who employs more than 200 people at her establishments, Lazar doesn't take that lightly. "Livelihoods are at stake here," she said. "Support local restaurants."

Mindy Reed, who runs Zin's and Revel Public House, said operations have been fairly normal this week. She credits some of that to the cancellation of the tennis tournament, as attendees who were already in town are dining out instead of spending time at the tennis garden.

"A lot of people are already here, and now they have nothing to do. They're eating and drinking, so it hasn't been bad," she said.

Looking ahead, Reed said she hopes locals who are healthy and not under quarantine will support local businesses.

Restaurants already have health precautions in place, and they're taking additional steps — like removing salt and pepper shakers from tables so they can be sanitized between uses.

"I'm hoping the locals will come out and support the businesses and not be afraid to eat at the restaurants," she said.

Melissa Daniels covers business and real estate in the Coachella Valley. She can be reached at (760)-567-8458 or melissa.daniels@desertsun.com. Follow Melissa on Twitter @melissamdaniels

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Coronavirus: Coachella Valley restaurants, shops, workers fear loss of festival revenue