Chicago quarantine: Wisconsin could be next state on travel order list, posing problems for those who cross border often
Wisconsin could be the next state added to the Chicago travel quarantine order, which poses some problems for Chicagoans used to crossing the border often.
The sidewalks of downtown Lake Geneva have been busy, and since the state opened back up it has attracted tourists anxious for a taste of normalcy. But Wisconsin's COVID-19 cases are also on the rise.
"I think it will adversely affect a number of businesses," said Former Lake Geneva Mayor Tom Hartz.
Hartz owns the Simple Café in Lake Geneva and is doing good business since the state's reopening. A travel quarantine could be a problem for him, and also for Stateline Midwives who counts many of their clients as from Chicago.
"Our client load has significantly increased because of COVID," said Kristy Hinz of Stateline Midwives." I think it would make families might feel more limited because they couldn't see their midwives on a regular basis."
Tuesday Chicago added Kansas to the emergency travel order, making it 18 states where visitors returning to Chicago are required to quarantine.
Without elaborating, Mayor Lightfoot Wednesday said Wisconsin could be next.
"It's possible," said the mayor.
Some wear masks on the streets of Lake Geneva, but many others go without.
Pat O'Neill lives just over the border in Wisconsin, but does carpentry work on many Illinois homes.
"I fear for people's income. That could be the impact," he said.
The former mayor said a third of Lake Geneva's economy comes from tourism, and many of those tourists come from Illinois. But, ironically, those large groups of tourists may also be partly responsible for the increase in COVID-19 cases.
