El Dorado and Butte counties get California’s first approvals to reopen some businesses
El Dorado and Butte counties, both with low coronavirus rates, were the first in California Tuesday to get state OK to hang “open” signs on hundreds of local businesses, notably restaurants for indoor dining and stores for inside shopping.
Those reopenings after nearly two months of virus-forced closures puts the north state counties’ economies a step ahead of the rest of the state, where stores are allowed open only for curbside pickup and restaurants for take-away orders.
Other counties may be joining El Dorado and Butte momentarily, though.
Gov. Gavin Newsom disclosed that nearly half of the states 58 counties – a total of 27 – had sent the state “attestation” forms in the last two days, essentially stating they believe they can safety open some businesses now. State health officials have been vetting those forms since Monday and consulting with county officials.
Placer, Yolo, and Nevada counties are among counties in the Sacramento region vying this week to be allowed to reopen restaurants, stores and some offices.
The governor, in a surprise announcement, also on Tuesday allowed all California counties, regardless of virus numbers, to reopen work offices, if employees there cannot telework.
This week’s reopenings in Butte and El Dorado represent an acknowledgment by Newsom that some counties, many of them in lightly populated rural and Northern California areas, have not been hit nearly as hard by the coronavirus and should be allowed to reopen their struggling economies more quickly, if they can attest that they have a plan in place to handle it safely.
The reopenings will come with significant constraints, however, that might make it hard for some restaurants to reopen sustainably. That includes reconfiguring seating arrangements in restaurants, disinfecting tables between dining groups, and asking customers to wait in their cars until their table is ready.
Newsom heralded the changes Tuesday as a step forward for California, saying the state is only able to begin slowly reopening because state and county “stay at home” orders have helped keep hospitalization numbers low and steady. Newsom said he needs to see the the number of hospital patients drop further before he will allow broader business openings.
“I hope that is an encouraging sign,” Newsom of the Butte and El Dorado openings. But he warned the coronavirus is far from done in California. “The worst mistake we can make is ... (believing) this virus is on summer vacation.”
El Dorado County applauds reopening
El Dorado County officials said they were pleased to get the gubernatorial green light. Already, several restaurants in the county had opened in the last two weeks in defiance of the governor’s statewide on-site dining prohibition.
El Dorado officials said businesses can reopen as soon as they have state-required safety plans in place.
“It’s a good day for El Dorado County, its residents and its economy,” said Board of Supervisors Chair Brian Veerkamp. “We’re very happy for our business owners, their employees and patrons that we are in the front of the State’s approval line so they can reestablish their livelihood and return to some semblance of normalcy.”
Butte County’s retailers were allowed to reopen their doors to customers as of Tuesday morning, said Lisa Almaguer, spokeswoman for the county’s Public Health Department. Shop workers have to wear masks and make sure customers maintain social distancing, according to documents Butte officials submitted to the state.
“This is not a return to normal even though we wish that’s what it was,” said Timi Ritter, a county supervisor, at a press conference last week announcing Butte’s initiative.
Butte County Supervisor Bill Connelly called the moment a triumph for north state counties who first challenged the governor’s initial thinking and have been trying to persuade him to approve reopenings while recognizing regional differences.
“Without Modoc, Yuba and Sutter Counties leading the way, rural California wouldn’t have gotten the Governor’s attention and Butte County wouldn’t be in the position we are today with re-opening,” he said. “We appreciate their efforts and look forward to seeing our neighboring counties opening up soon.”
The excitement over the reopenings, though, was mixed with concern for the continued health issue the county is facing. Butte County public health officer, Dr. Andy Miller, warned businesses and residents not to ignore the guidelines.
“This virus is an incredible risk to our residents,” he said. He said the county might have to “reinstate restrictions if necessary.”
Updates on Sacramento, Yolo, Placer, Yuba-Sutter
Sacramento County officials said they hope to have an attestation document ready to send to the state by early next week. The county believes it qualifies for reopenings on all accounts except the requirement that it have recorded no deaths in the last two weeks.
County health chief Dr. Peter Beilenson said he will argue that local deaths have been happening in congregate care living sites, which are largely sequestered from the rest of the public. Given that, Beilenson said larger counties that have a number of nursing and assisted care facilities should be given some leeway on death numbers if their other case and rate numbers are low.
Yolo County officials said they plan to send their attestation form to the state next week. Like Sacramento, that county does not meet the state’s reopening standard as of now, however, because of a surge of five deaths in the last two weeks in one skilled nursing facility in Woodland.
Yolo County officials contend those deaths should not count against the county, given that Yolo passes all other state standards.
“Using the new caseloads and cases and zero community deaths is much more accurate of where we are now,” county public health director Brian Vaughn told the Board of Supervisors during a teleconference meeting. “We believe it meets the spirit of what they’re getting to.”
Placer County officials, in contrast, say they believe they are “well-positioned” to get the green light to move deeper into Phase 2. The county has one of the lowest infection rates in the state. Placer submitted an attestation to the state Monday. The move comes after Placer County sent a strongly worded letter to Newsom demanding municipalities have more control over when and how they reopen their local economies.
But there were several benchmarks that Placer County is still racing to meet. Placer County currently has a team of 15 people that can conduct contact tracing, far below the 60 required under local variance. On Monday morning, the county began training 50 employees to become so-called disease detectives. That training will be complete within a week, officials said.
Yuba and Sutter counties, who last week allowed many businesses to open in defiance of the governor’s orders, said they were in negotiations Tuesday with the Newsom administration on getting state approvals, after the fact, for those openings.
Administration officials have threatened those two counties with a loss of federal stimulus funds, and regulators have called or visited some Yuba and Sutter businesses, notably nail and hair salons, telling them to close.
“There are some constructive conversations taking place between the two counties and (state public health officials),” Yuba-Sutter spokeswoman Rachel Rosenbaum wrote in an email Tuesday. “Our Health Officer, Dr. Phuong Luu, is confident that we can achieve a clear path forward in accordance with (state) guidance.”
The first phase of the governor’s reopening plan involves allowing lower- to medium-risk activities to restart over the course of the next few weeks or months, depending on the state’s progress in stemming the spread of the virus.
Counties that have low cases per capita, no recent deaths and robust testing will be allowed to move ahead more quickly, he said. Many rural counties that have not been hard-hit have been pressing the governor to allow them to reopen some of their economy.
Other counties, notably in the Bay Area, are taking a slower approach to reopening, saying they want to be sure they have the coronavirus spread under control, and not risk a resurgence.
The variance the governor is offering some of those counties involves these businesses:
- Office-based businesses (telework remains strongly encouraged)
- Select services: car washes, pet grooming, and landscape gardening
- Destination retail, including shopping malls and swap meets
- Dine-in restaurants (other amenities, like bars or gaming areas, are not permitted in Stage 2)
- Outdoor museums, and open gallery spaces and other public spaces with modifications
- Schools with modifications
This story was originally published May 12, 2020 at 11:21 AM.