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LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo. — Beyond Kansas City’s borders, the suburbs of eastern Jackson County have their own requirements for getting back to business.

Jackson County’s reopening kicked in Monday, and for many shops, salons and restaurants, the lights are back on.

Going to the salon is usually exciting, and for Joi Seese, she’s been looking forward to it a little more this time.

“I didn’t really know what to expect,” Seese said. “But once I got here, I was very impressed with how they have it set up and how things are going.”

Posh Hair Salon is open for business and taking precautions. They’re asking clients to wait in their cars instead of their waiting area. Stylists are wearing face shields and requiring clients to wear masks. They’re also telling people if you feel sick — you need to stay home.

Owner Tiffany Juarez was nervous about reopening.

“The shield’s a little different,” Juarez said. “The masks are a little different. But other than that, it’s just you and your client and back to normal seeing their faces again, making them beautiful again. It feels great.”

Across town, you can finally sit down and eat at Pearl Tavern for the first time in quite a while.

“It has been beyond challenging. It really has,” owner Andy Lock said.

When you step into the restaurant, you’ll notice a lot of differences. There’s blue tape on the tables, marking out spaces for social distancing. There ‘s hand sanitizer at the door, and all the employees are wearing masks. 

There are no menus on the table, and nothing else for that matter. Things like salt and pepper, or any other condiments, are given upon request. Menus can be viewed on the customer’s phone, or the restaurant will provide a disposable paper one.

Lock said during the stay-at-home order they had to get creative.

“We can be a better restaurant group coming out the back side for sure that we were coming in the front side,” Lock said. “So if we can be safer and better, have better menus and better food quality, then we think that we’ll be just fine in the long term, but it’s going to be a challenge.”

“We’re all here because we feel safe, you know,” Juarez said. “So I think that’s the consensus I feel today. We all feel safe.”

Only about half of the stores in the downtown Lee’s Summit area were open Monday. Many restaurants and coffee shops are still offering carry out for now.