Hamilton County residents cautiously optimistic about loosening of virus restrictions

CARMEL, Ind. (WISH) — Many people in Hamilton County are excited to hear Stage 2 of Indiana’s economic reopening is right around the corner.

Friday afternoon, people were hearing the restrictions are finally on track to be over, and most people are happy.

“I think we’re ready for it. It’s been kind of hard to adjust to, but I think everybody’s done a pretty good job so far,” said Stacy Murphy, of Carmel.

But it’s the businesses who had the most to celebrate. Tijuana Flats was already celebrating Cinco de Mayo this weekend, now they have one more thing to celebrate. But preparations take time. They may not be able to open as soon as they’re allowed because they want to stay safe.

“I mean it still might be a little time before we can get going on the inside. So it still might be curbside for a while. But hey, we’re going to look at every avenue, said John Rowe, the owner of the Fishers location of Tijuana Flats.

And it’s safety that’s on the minds of many Hoosiers right now. Even if they’re excited, they don’t want to jump the gun.

“For us, I think we would probably just continue to stay inside. The risk isn’t worth it for us… As long as they’re making informed decisions along the way and reserve the right to pull that timeline back for safety, I think it’s a good place to start,” said Beth Anne Kuhnau of Carmel.

And it’s not just a free-for-all when everything is allowed to open. Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard says he’s putting together a task force to make sure everything opens in the safest way possible.

Last month, he closed a portion of the Monon Trail because too many people swarmed the area at the first sight of a nice day. He says this new plan is the same thing: If you don’t respect the rules, the timeline can be set back.