Chicago will begin ramping up enforcement on phase four guidelines Thursday as the city braces for the holiday weekend.
According to the mayor's office, citations and fines will begin, particularly for bars and restaurants, to ensure they are "following the public health guidelines for phase four during the Fourth of July holiday weekend."
The Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection will issue citations with fines of up to $10,000 for social distancing, capacity limit and face covering violations, the mayor's office said.
In addition, investigators can now immediately close a business "in cases of egregious violation."
"To avoid the examples of egregious crowding as well as disregard for social distancing and face coverings seen last weekend, BACP has spent this week canvasing entertainment districts throughout Chicago," the mayor's office said in a release.
Under the guidelines, bars and restaurants can seat a max of 25% capacity or 50 people, whichever is fewer, and must stop serving alcohol at 11 p.m. They are also required to manage lines outside of their business.
Since Chicago began phase three on June 3, the BACP said it has received at total of 764 complaints related to reopening. At least 377 investigations have been conducted and 59 warnings or "notices to correct" were issued, along with citations for nine businesses.
The city urged members of the public to submit complaints regarding social distancing violations to 311.
