Yolo County restaurants, shops are reopening slower than others in the region. Here’s why

Nearly 75 percent of California counties had state approval to reopen in-store shopping and dine-in restaurant service by May 22. Sacramento became one of the state’s largest counties to get permission that Friday, joining Placer and El Dorado businesses that had reopened a week prior.

Yet across Tower Bridge, Yolo County was deliberately slow to lift shelter-in-place restrictions aimed at limiting the spread of the coronavirus and its affiliated respiratory disease COVID-19. The county Board of Supervisors and public health director Brian Vaughn finally decided May 26 to let nonessential retail and offices reopen with restrictions as soon as the next day.

Opening restaurants, hair salons, shopping centers and churches increases the coronavirus’ risk of spreading, and West Sacramento Mayor Christopher Cabaldon tried on May 15 to dissuade the board from giving the green light, citing a lack of sufficient testing and tracing.

Yolo County could have reopened as early as May 19, but held off even as neighboring region’s brick-and-mortar economies began restarting. Supervisors instead voted to have staff come back the following week with detailed plans of how the county could reopen safely, the Davis Enterprise reported.

“The virus and its risk don’t care who you compare yourself to,” Cabaldon said. “People will be like, ‘Well, Roseville’s open or Placerville’s open.’ That’s about as relevant to us as Singapore or Hong Kong being open.”

Yolo County had 216 confirmed COVID-19 cases as of Friday and 24 deaths, 17 of which were tied to an outbreak at Stollwood Convalescent Hospital in Woodland. More than 5,500 people have been tested in the county after a new examination site was established in Woodland last month; it moved to West Sacramento on June 2.

A voluntary testing site still has limitations, as it’s unlikely to attract the most at-risk community members, Cabaldon said. But an anticipated spike from increased testing never really materialized, making Vaughn comfortable moving forward into the latter part of Phase 2 of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s four-phase recovery plan.

“Our schedule for reopening reflects that we’re being responsive to the economic impacts out there in a way that, from a public health perspective, is well thought out,” Vaughn said. “So far the partnership has been great with businesses being very supportive, I think. What I see out in the community and shopping around is people taking it seriously.”

Yolo County was among California’s first to require people to wear masks in public, including in all stores or restaurants when not eating, or while working an essential job. Face coverings are recommended but not mandated in Sacramento, El Dorado and Placer counties.

Restaurant guidance for COVID-19

The state asks all restaurants to follow a 99-point guidance to reopen for dine-in seating. While Sacramento County sent each restaurant a reopening checklist for their own in-house use, Yolo County distributed five-page questionnaires with prompts such as “list high risk areas or activities within the facility and the measures that will be taken to limit the risks” or “describe the process for addressing peak periods and queuing procedures.”

Restaurants are required to submit the filled-out forms to Yolo County before reopening their dining rooms. If they neglect to turn them in, the county will start with reminders to do so as soon as possible, spokeswoman Jenny Tan said.

As Cafe Bernardo in downtown Davis scrambled to seat customers by last Thursday after not even offering takeout since early April, co-owner Randy Paragary said he appreciated the extra work created by the county-mandated reopening plan. It challenged Cafe Bernardo management to think critically about the restaurant’s setup and address potential problems before they arose, he said.

“I’m happy to see this, to tell you the truth,” said Paragary, who also co-owns four Sacramento restaurants. “As a restaurateur and as a restaurant customer, I think that by forcing restaurants to really read this and agree to follow the protocols, it’s very comprehensive and very impactful.”

A handful of Yolo County restaurants opened for dine-in the first day they could, including Dos Coyotes Border Cafe in Davis, Rafael’s Family Restaurant in Woodland and El Patio Fresh Mexican Grill in both cities. Most, however, weren’t so eager. Sophia’s Thai Kitchen, KetMoRee Thai Restaurant & Bar and Mishka’s Cafe in Davis, for example, all posted to Facebook saying they wouldn’t reopen for sit-down service until they had better plans in place to prevent the virus’ spread.

Restaurant operators in Winters anticipated the May 26 meeting would grant them permission to open for dine-in that Thursday or Friday, Buckhorn Corp. director of operations Emarie VanGalio said. The 4 p.m. email that Tuesday announcing they could do so Wednesday came as a surprise, and VanGalio said she didn’t know of any restaurants in the 7,000-person town that had reopened for dine-in as of Wednesday.

“Our plan is to really look at it in stages instead of just saying, ‘The doors are open, come on in,’” VanGalio said. “We want to do it slowly and gradually so it makes sense for everybody, and to see what demand is going to be.”

Buckhorn Steakhouse and Putah Creek Cafe did, however, begin letting customers enjoy to-go meals on the restaurants’ outdoor patios Wednesday. Servers will eventually start waiting on those tables, and indoor dine-in service will resume after at least two weeks, VanGalio said.

The City of Winters will allow restaurant patios to expand onto sidewalks, as is being done in Sacramento, Auburn and Elk Grove. Yet a move indoors depends in part on how quickly tourism, which used to triple Winters’ population on some weekends, rebounds.

“I think there’s a real desire for people to get out,” VanGalio said. “I want to get out and be social. But I’m also hesitant when I see how closed and confined restaurants are. Do people really want to be inside a dining room with other people around them? I’m not sure.”

This story was originally published June 5, 2020 at 5:00 AM.