KEY POINTS

  • A strip club on the border of Wyoming and Colorado was among the first to reopen in the nation amid the pandemic
  • Adult performers at The Den all wore masks but patrons did not
  • Wyoming has less than 600 COVID-19 cases

A strip club in Wyoming opened its doors Friday (May 15), among the first in the nation to do so, with heightened precautions as the coronavirus pandemic continues to ravage the U.S. mainland.

“The Den” is located south of Cheyenne and has some parts of the establishment in Colorado. It resumed operations with employees wearing face masks. It did not require masks for its patrons, and some were seen entering without any form of protection.

Wyoming allowed bars, restaurants and other businesses to reopen with in-person services starting May 15 after it saw fewer cases of the coronavirus than neighboring Colorado did.

The owner, Kim Chavez, told Fox31 that they were excited about the state allowing businesses like The Den to reopen “because it’s been very difficult for us.”

To celebrate the opening, The Den threw a “masks on, clothes off” party. The workers were scantily clad but wore face protection, while a maximum limit on the number of customers was implemented in the establishment.

Public health restrictions were put in place to contain the spread of the coronavirus, affecting service industries for several months. Businesses did not have income and could not pay employees.

The coronavirus aid package approved by Congress included trillions of dollars in direct payments to American citizens, with qualified recipients receiving at most $1,200 in stimulus checks. Adult performers, including those working in The Den, could not qualify and most say they didn’t receive help from the U.S. government.

Chavez told USA Today that she wasn’t complete sure about reopening but felt that she needed to with other bars. Businesses like hers were specifically barred from applying for the Paycheck Protection Program and other federal stimulus packages.

“We knew that once our doors closed, we were screwed until we could reopen,” Chavez said. “We just need to practice social distancing. We need to make sure that our customers feel safe when they’re here. We need to protect our staff. And just make sure that we’re doing our best to keep everybody protected and safe.”

The Den has enforced social distancing guidelines, including banning physical contact. Customers were required to sanitize their hands before entering.

According to state data, Wyoming only has 566 laboratory confirmed cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, as of May 17, with 8 deaths and 188 cases pending test results.

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