BELTON, Texas — The COVID-19 outbreak has make staying open difficult for plenty of businesses but the local lakes are proving to be a saving grace for businesses trying to stay afloat.
The Dead Fish Grill in Belton has been keeping their capacity under 50 percent to protect customers which has limited their revenue, but General Manger Jesse Rivera says customers are keeping them going.
"From the time we opened up in June till now, we have increased, each week, money wise, staff wise," Rivera said.
Rivera said many of the customers keeping them going come in right after a day on the lake and it's the reason they have been about to bring that staff back.
"They'll swim, take out boats, jet-skis and then at the end they dock the boat and they know that we're right here," Rivera said.
Meanwhile, Frank's Marina on Belton Lake is also seeing a steady stream of customers. Employee Barrett Ledger said people are grateful to get out of the house and they are seeing even more customers this summer than last.
"It's picked up a little bit, everyone's ready to get out of the house and the lake is a good place to come," Ledger said. "We'll have several groups a day more (than last year), throughout the weekends especially."
Ledger also said the steady boat traffic on the lake has meant a constant demand for ice, drinks, and other items sold at the marina. He said the nearby boat ramp has been backed up with all the people getting boats in.
"It's a pretty sizable benefit for sure," Ledger said.
Rivera can't say for sure if the trend is going to continue for the rest of the year or not, but the recovery has gone well so far.
"We can't predict the future. No one knows what is going to happen in the next couple months. All we can do is take care of what we are doing now. Continue to tweak it. Continue to make it grow," Rivera said.
