"It’s a similar story throughout Clemson, South Carolina, and in small college towns across the country, where paper signs taped to bar doors, retail windows and restaurant entrances announce they’re closed until further notice.
As states take steps to reopen businesses and restart the economy, merchants in college towns are only now entering their traditional slow period, even as they look ahead to a fall forecast clouded with uncertainty. With uncertainty around colleges’ plans to reopen, experts warn they might face a prolonged slump that could mean ‘total devastation.’
Will students show up for college in fall? Community colleges offer a hint. It isn’t pretty." …