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Chicago Moves to Tier Two COVID Mitigations - What Does It Mean for Us?

Updated: Feb 1, 2021

Effective January 18, 2021, the State of Illinois announced that Chicago can move to Tier 2 Mitigations. The State has been managing the pandemic through a tiered mitigation plan that helps inform decisions based on scientific data about COVID-19. To learn more about this plan, click here.


Tier 2 includes the following mitigations:


Bars and Restaurants

  • All bars and restaurants close at 11pm and may reopen no earlier than 6am the following day

  • No indoor service

  • All bar and restaurant patrons should be seated at tables outside

  • No ordering, seating, or congregating at bar (bar stools should be removed). Tables should be 6 feet apart

  • No standing or congregating indoors or outdoors while waiting for a table or exiting

  • No dancing or standing indoors

  • No tables exceeding 6 people

  • Reservations required for each party

  • No seating of multiple parties at one table

Includes private clubs and country clubs - Meetings, social events, and gatherings (including weddings, funerals, potlucks, hotel centers, etc.)

  • Limit to 10 guests in both indoor and outdoor settings

  • Applicable to professional, cultural, and social group gatherings.

  • Not applicable to students participating in-person classroom learning or sports.

  • This does not reduce the overall facility capacity dictated by general Phase 4 business guidance such as office, personal care, retail, etc.

  • Hotel room occupancy should be limited to registered guests only, with the maximum allowance being the number of individuals permissible per existing fire code for each applicable guest room

  • Hotel fitness centers should be closed, or operated only on a reservation model with capacity limited to 25% of the maximum occupancy for the room

  • No party buses

Organized group recreational activities (including sports and fitness centers)

  • Recreation and sporting facilities limit to lesser of 25 guests or 25% of overall room capacity both indoors & outdoors

  • No groups of more than 10, including fitness classes, but multiple groups are allowed if separated by impermeable barriers and within overall facility capacity limits

  • Face coverings must be worn at all times in fitness centers, including while engaged in individual exercise regardless of person or machine spacing

  • Sports should follow the mitigation measures set forth in the Winter Update to the All Sport Guidelines, which outlines appropriate levels of practice and competition based on individual sport risk

  • Outdoor Activities (not included in the above exposure settings) continue per current Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) guidance


For the most up-to-date information for businesses, click here. The City has set up a website to keep residents updated on the pandemic data, COVID-19 best practices, and the vaccine at chicago.gov/Covid.


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