The last time pro-Trump and far-right demonstrators rallied in D.C. in December, a small crowd went into the Eaton DC hotel without masks and refused to socially distance. Some of them destroyed one of the hotel’s hand sanitizer dispensers, according to Sheldon Scott, who is the Head of Purpose for Eaton Workshop, which runs the hotel.

“It made for a very difficult situation,” Scott said.

So this week, ahead of another round of planned pro-Trump demonstrations, Eaton DC posted on Instagram that it would not accept new guests from Monday to Wednesday. The combination of surging coronavirus cases in the District and resistance to mask-wearing seemed too risky.

“It just seemed like it was the responsible thing to do to protect the health and safety of the people who work here,” Scott said.

Many other businesses and institutions in the downtown area decided to close or adjust their operations to minimize the risk of violence and to avoid putting staff at risk of exposure to the coronavirus: Hotel Harrington and Harry’s Bar, which have in the past been gathering places for far-right activists, is closed this week. Harry’s and the Harrington have been the site of stabbings and D.C. COVID rules violations in in connection with past pro-Trump rallies.

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has urged residents to avoid the downtown area on Tuesday and Wednesday. Other local officials have echoed her calls out of concern that the area could become chaotic. Far-right forums have been flooded with violent threats ahead of this week’s demonstrations, according to the Washington Post. One group that has plans to gather in D.C. on Wednesday is the Proud Boys—which has been classified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center and has a reputation for violence, misogyny, Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, and anti-immigrant views. The group’s leader was arrested in D.C. this week and told to stay out of the city.

But some businesses decided to remain open, for a combination of reasons. Some small local businesses said they couldn’t afford to close. Other large hotel chains seem to be seeing brisk business, after the pandemic led to steep declines in rentals.

A Hilton spokesperson told DCist/WAMU that it could not “speak to specific details” regarding booking activity at its hotels, but at least 17 of Hilton’s hotels in the District were sold out for Tuesday night, according to the company’s website. Early Tuesday, guests in pro-Trump attire could be seen checking into many of the hotels in the downtown area. Police cars and police officers on foot were also stationed in front of several hotels, including the Capital Hilton and Hyatt Place adjacent to Black Lives Matter Plaza at 16th Streets and K Streets Northwest.

D.C.’s Black Lives Matter chapter has been calling for hotels to close down and refuse to accept business from far-right demonstrators. When asked to respond to these calls, a Hilton spokesperson said, “Hilton does not adopt or endorse the views of any guest, and our hotels are considered places of public accommodation.” The spokesperson added that its hotels adhere to local guidelines and prioritize safety and well-being of guests and employees.

Scott, with Eaton Workshop, said that while the brand is “unapologetically progressive,” the decision to halt new arrivals this week was “absolutely not” a political one.

“We don’t make decisions or operate our business based on political ideology,” said Scott. “But it’s unfortunate that the matter of people’s survival…is somehow still political.”

The decision to stop accepting new guests this week would of course have a financial impact on the company, but Scott said any profits would not be worth the risk of staying open. The decision was driven by the risk of coronavirus—which is personal for Scott: He survived COVID-19 himself, and his cousin died from the virus.

“If you go look at…other hotels, their rates are much higher. And what that says is that there’s a demand,” Scott said. “But with that demand is a great responsibility. And that’s just a responsibility we just don’t want to have. We can’t put a day rate on someone’s life or livelihood.”

A few blocks away from Eaton DC, a sign on the Downtown Day Services Center at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church—which offers unsheltered residents a warm place to be during cold weather—said the warming center would be closed on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Debra Kilpatrick Byrd, the Director of Homeless Services for the DowntownDC Business Improvement District, said the center made the decision to close to honor the Mayor’s request for as few people as possible to be downtown “and hopefully avoid putting people in harm’s way.”

The center continued to serve grab and go lunch with adjusted hours on Tuesday, and planned to serve lunch for the city’s hungry and homeless at an alternate location in Chinatown Park on Wednesday—just outside the areas affected by street closures.

“Demonstrations are hard and it does make a difference when it comes to servicing people who need services like this every single day, but…we’re just trained to adjust,” said Byrd.

Baan Siam, a Thai restaurant in Mt. Vernon Triangle, also announced on Twitter that it would be closed on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“Given the upcoming street closures and traffic restrictions, we won’t be able to make deliveries and it may be difficult for customers to get to us,” the restaurant wrote.

The tea shop Teaism closed its Penn Quarter location Tuesday and Wednesday. The company’s co-owner Michelle Brown wrote on Twitter that they made the decision because of Bowser’s request that residents avoid downtown (The Dupont Circle location will remain open “as long as it remains safe,” the tweet said).

Many businesses downtown were boarded up ahead of the demonstrations. Tom Lien, the owner of Capitol Grounds Cafe in Farragut Square, said he noticed a downturn in business on Tuesday, perhaps because fewer people who work at businesses in the area were going into work that day and getting lunch from his cafe.

But Lien said he would be keeping his doors open on Wednesday out of financial necessity.

“I can’t afford to be closed right now…every day counts for me as far as revenue,” he said. “I’ve only been an owner for a year here, and I’m trying to do the best I can, and just trying to hang on.”

But, Lien added, “Safety’s first, so if it gets really crazy, of course I’m going to close down for myself and my employees.”

Employees at several of the local chain food retailers in the area around Black Lives Matter Plaza and Farragut Square also said they planned to remain open on Wednesday. A manager at one store, who did not share her name because she was not authorized to speak with the press, said she had “fingers crossed for safety.”

A couple blocks away in Black Lives Matter Plaza, D.C. resident Frederick Walker was part of what he called a “vigil.” He and a few other people were sitting below a collection of Black Lives Matter and anti-Trump flags, manning a supply table with water and snacks and listening to Jay-Z play on speakers in the plaza. Walker said he slept there overnight on Monday night, and planned to stay for the duration of the pro-Trump demonstrations. He said his mission was to try to keep the peace and protect D.C. residents as Proud Boys and far-right demonstrators roamed the city.

“The Proud Boys need to go home,” Walker said. “I don’t want no beef in the D.C. area, here in my hometown…I don’t want to start nothing, I just want to be peaceful.”

At one point late Tuesday morning, a group of pro-Trump demonstrators approached Walker and his companions. (Black Lives Matter Plaza has been a hotspot for confrontations between pro- and anti-Trump demonstrators. The last time the Proud Boys marched in D.C., one major focus of their efforts was trying to get into Black Lives Matter Plaza and confront local activists there.) One Trump supporter blew a whistle to announce their presence, exclaiming, “It’s the Trump train!” The two groups argued verbally, largely about some of the pro-Trump’s demonstrators’ refusal to wear masks.

During the argument, a pro-Trump demonstrator tried to take some of the water from the anti-Trump group’s supply table. A police officer intervened and told him to stop.

“It’s not even nighttime yet,” said one passerby.