Businesses, organizations welcome lifting of capacity and distancing restrictions

Minnesota’s COVID-19 restrictions are officially a thing of the past. On Friday, the state dropped capacity and distancing limits.

For Minnesota businesses, this is a sigh of relief for many who have been experiencing ups and downs during this pandemic.

"This weekend we got a lot of good sales for today and throughout the weekend," said David Bresette, general manager of Marcus Oakdale Cinemas.

For the film and movie industry, COVID-19 hit them hard, forcing them to be creative to get by with things like curbside popcorn and a private cinema program.

"It’s adapt to survive," Bresette said.

Inside the theater, masks aren’t required for those who are vaccinated. Those who have not received the vaccine are encouraged to mask. Plus, seats are still spaced out a bit.

"As our guests feel more comfortable, we’ll certainly look to expand or change that during the summer," Bresette said.

This weekend, with two big new movies attracting guests and the lifted restrictions, Bresette is hoping to keep the momentum going.

"The summer is set up for a huge return to summer business for us," Bresette said.

Over at the Minneapolis Convention Center, a return to events is coming.

"It really signals the start of our true recovery of our industry," said Melvin Tennant, president and CEO of Meet Minneapolis.

Fully lifting capacity limits, the convention center is prepping for a busy second half of the year.

"That’s been really good to be able to tell them that it’s totally open now and we can host your conventions," Tennant said.

Meet Minneapolis is responsible for bringing in up to 800 events a year and supporting 36,000 jobs. But during COVID, they lost more than half of those jobs.

"We’re excited that we’re able to now see the jobs come back," Tennant said.

For more information about events coming to the Minneapolis Convention Center this year, click here.

From restaurants eager to serve up more drinks and entrees to stadiums filling more seats, this summer is a welcome change for so many.

For Metro Transit buses and trains, capacity limits are lifted but masks are still required.

Individual businesses and cities can still set their own restrictions.