Gov. Abbott expected to release more details Monday about reopening Texas businesses

Texas Governor Greg Abbott is expected to release more details Monday about reopening Texas businesses following COVID-19 restrictions.

Abbott suggested last week that reopening hair salons and shopping inside stores could be soon.

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And as many wait to see what the governor will do, one Dallas business owner said he hopes people can eat inside restaurants soon.

Jack Perkins owns Maple and Motor, a popular burger restaurant in Dallas. His restaurant is still able to offer to-go and delivery orders but that’s not enough to keep it from being pushed to the brink.

Since the stay-at-home order was issued, he has only made 30 percent of his typical revenue. He and his business partner have gone without pay so that all 18 employees can still get a check. Their landlord has also delayed their rent payment.

Dallas County has seen some positive indications in its numbers in recent days but health officials said it’s too early to say the spread of the virus has declined. On Sunday, Dallas County had its 82nd COVID-19 death.

“It is still not definitive. We want to see, make sure these trends stay in this pattern. It’s better than seeing large increased but we are not out of the woods,” said Dr. Philip Huang, the Dallas County health director.

Perkins believes the spread of the virus is low and things should open back.

“If we make a data driven decision on what we do to reopen, I think we will be fine,” he said. “I just think that we need to open back up. People who want to quarantine and stay home, away from the possibility of the virus, they should do that.”

That will be the key question for many businesses when they do open back up. A new poll from the Texas Tribune shows about two-thirds of people agree non-essential business operations should be suspended and more than three-fourths of people support orders to stay at home except for essential activities.

Gov. Abbott’s announcement on the next step for restarting economic activity will be at 2:30 p.m.

RELATED: Interactive map of Texas COVID-19 cases