Marc van Hooijdonk, owner of Tostiworld, represents the food court entrepreneurs and is happy with the upcoming relaxations: “The fact that we can offer more seats is very good news. After all, we are not yet at the turnover level we had before the corona crisis.” At the same time, the approach of the compulsory admission check turns out to be a brainteaser. “What if someone doesn’t come in for the restaurants, but just wants to study? And some 60 to 70 percent of people come in for take-away, when no check is needed. There is a large grey area. How we should deal with those cases is not entirely clear yet.”
On Thursday morning, the entrepreneurs weren’t sure yet who will be responsible for the admission checks. Fikret Egemen of the HAS: “We’ve asked the university but haven’t received a response yet.” A university spokesperson told EM on Thursday morning that the entrepreneurs themselves are responsible.
That’s not a problem, Egemen says, although he and his staff are running out of steam. “We employed four girls before corona, only one of them came back. Financially it’s tough: I’ve had to take welfare payments and only the savings for my children are left. We just keep working hard and things are getting better, but a lot of suppliers still have to be paid back, for example.” He hopes that if people comply to the measures, the situation will be back to normal in a few months’ time.
No QR code at Vitam
Meanwhile, access to restaurants and canteens of Vitam, such as the Etude in the Tinbergen building, doesn’t require a corona pass. This is because these are ‘company canteens’ and do not fall in the same category as regular restaurants, according to a spokesperson of the university.
Jon de Ruijter, director of Erasmus Sport, is happy. Because of the relaxation for sports facilities, especially in the fitness area, more people can enter. “From Monday onwards, 75 people per time slot will be able to enter and we will be open from early morning until late at night”, says De Ruijter.
Light check policy
The sports café will have a ‘light check policy’. During the day people mainly come for take-away or for the terrace. “From about five o’clock we’ll check everyone’s QR code, before that time we do it randomly. That is how they do it in other cities as well”, says De Ruijter.
Still, it is not all sunshine and roses at Erasmus Sport: one in three students do not show up for their reserved time slot. De Ruijter is extremely disappointed: “It’s really fucked up. While we are getting more and more complaints about few available moments, last week we had no less than five hundred people who did not show up without notice. We’re now considering temporarily blocking the sports passes of people who are no-shows twice in one week without notice.”
Twice the work
In contrast to the complex situation at Erasmus Sport, at In De Smitse, as a ‘normal’ pub, it is a lot clearer how the measures will work out. Everyone who wants to enter – also for visiting the toilet – has to be checked. After checking, you’ll get a stamp. For the time being, De Smitse will keep the façade of the building closed, so it is easier to check at the door.
Secretary Finn van der Linden: “We’re happy that the pub can be full again and the impossible task of keeping everyone seated on busy nights is over, but checking will be tiresome. Now we have to have two board members on an evening, because you can’t be a bar manager and check QR codes at the same time.” He therefore hopes that the admission checks will no longer be necessary in November.
