Like many politicians across the country, Belleville Mayor Mark Eckert is feeling the wrath of citizenry: He dined out in St. Louis where Covid restrictions are less severe, while indoor dining in his city is shut down and people are advised to stay home.
Eckert and his wife on Saturday patronized Rigazzi's on the Hill, an event captured on social media, which prompted the mayor to apologize on Facebook.
On Sunday, Eckert wrote:
"On Saturday December 12th, my wife and I took a drive to look at Christmas lights. After driving through Belleville, we ventured across the river to St. Louis and enjoyed many of their displays. Before heading home, we decided to get some dinner. We found ourselves in The Hill area, and walked into Rigazzi’s. Had there been a long wait for a table, we might have ordered something to go, but they had a table for us in 5 minutes, and we felt comfortable with a table against a wall. We wore our masks when we weren’t seated.
"This was not a plan to sidestep the guidelines set by the State of Illinois. This was not meant to be anything other than a date night with my wife. We remarked as we sat at dinner that we could not remember the last time we had ended up on The Hill spontaneously. Even pre Covid, anyone who knows me knows that I am diligent about supporting Belleville and I rarely go outside of Belleville to eat or shop. I frequent restaurants throughout our city, I prioritize supporting Belleville businesses, and I encourage my family to do the same. However, I realize that in my position optics are everything, and I regret my decision to eat in a restaurant at this time.
"Covid 19 is a very serious threat that has had a major impact on our community and every community throughout our state and the world. I take these warnings very seriously, and I should not have taken the risk to dine out.
"In recent days, the city of Belleville has issued 3 warning letters to businesses where we received calls about businesses who have not eliminated indoor dining. This is not my mandate, but I am required to uphold restrictions set forth by the State of Illinois. The State has taken guidelines from health experts to establish restrictions that they believe will help reduce the spread of the virus.
"Going forward, I hope you will continue to join me supporting Belleville businesses. The City has been working hard to find more ways to help local businesses who are struggling at this time.
"Again, I apologize for this mistake. Especially to those in the service industry who are struggling at this time and the health care workers who are dealing with this crisis."
As of midday on Monday, Eckert's Facebook apology received 544 comments and 140 shares.
Most were critical of Eckert's decision, in general calling him a hypocrite because indoor dining in the Metro-East, per Gov. JB Pritzker's order, has been banned since Sept. 2, and Eckert has been advising people to "stay home, save lives."
For instance:
"You regret getting caught. You 100% knew better regardless. Sending notices to business to cease indoor dining. INSTEAD OF FIGHTING FOR THEM!! No excuses."
"So word is BPD ticketed a local restaurant for indoor dining. Great way to use police resources Mayor Eckert. Not like there aren't shootings, robberies, car theft etc in Belleville. Glad you have your priorities straight. Not to mention that you went to a restaurant in St. Louis while you keep ours closed. You Suck!"
"So you obviously feel like businesses should have the freedom to be open and individuals should have the freedom to decide if they want to eat in them. Your apology is useless. How dare you hinder any local places from offering similar services?!"
There were also messages of support. For instance:
"Mark Eckert I hope you and your wife get more opportunities to have a nice date night during the holidays. Don't let these trolls get you down. Rigazzi's is a small business thank you for supporting! Merry Christmas!"
Eckert has served as mayor since 2004. He is up for re-election in April.