Governor Orders Closure of Indoor Operations in Santa Barbara County

July 1, 2020, 1:14 am 32.2k Views 85 Comments

Governor Gavin Newsom during an earlier COVID-19 press conference (courtesy photo)

By edhat staff

Governor Gavin Newsom has ordered the closure of indoor operations such as dine-in restaurants, for 19 counties including Santa Barbara and Ventura.

These indoor operations that must close for at least three weeks include restaurants, wineries and tasting rooms, movie theaters, family entertainment centers, zoos and museums and cardrooms Newsom said during his coronavirus briefing.

“This doesn’t mean restaurants are shut down,” Newsom said. “It means that we’re trying to take the activities, as many activities as we can — these mixed activities, these concentrated activities — and move them outdoors, which is a way of mitigating the spread of this virus.”

The 19 counties affected have been included on the state’s COVID-19 watch list for having elevated disease transmission, increasing hospitalization and limited hospital capacity.

The affected counties are Contra Costa, Fresno, Glenn, Imperial, Kern, Kings, Los Angeles, Merced, Orange, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Joaquin, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Solano, Stanislaus, Tulare, and Ventura.

Newsom stated the above counties should consider canceling firework shows if they haven’t already, and supports the decision by Los Angeles and Ventura county officials for preemptively closing beaches. He stated he is not mandating the closure of beaches but will be modifying parking facility operations and closing them to traffic throughout southern California and parts of Monterey, Santa Cruz and farther north.

Santa Barbara and Goleta have already cancelled firework displays but decided to keep local beaches open, much to the dismay of residents who fear people from other counties will travel to the area for the holiday weekend. 

On Wednesday evening, the City of Santa Barbara announced they will close all of its beach parking lots for the 4th of July Weekend beginning on Friday, July 3rd through Sunday, July 5th in association with the State closing all beach parking. Public parking on Stearns Wharf and Harbor Main lots will remain open to support the liveaboards, marina and adjacent businesses.

The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department reported emergency permits for food service will no longer be allowed in any of the businesses outlined by the Governor.

This guidance is to stay in place for a minimum of three weeks and is subject to extension based on epidemiologic indicators.

“We advise local businesses to prepare for these newly announced closures,” shared Public Health Officer Dr. Henning Ansorg. “We know that indoor settings with close crowds, as typically seen on holiday weekends, can create an unfavorable environment for the transmission of this virus. Please limit your exposure to people outside your home and wear your face covering when needed.”

Newsom stated California had seen a 43% increase in the coronavirus hospitalization rate and a nearly 50% increase in COVID-19 cases in the past 14 days, as well as 110 deaths within the past 24 hours.

Edhat Staff

Written by Edhat Staff

What do you think?

0 Points

Comments

37 Comments deleted by Administrator

Leave a Review or Comment

85 Comments

  2. Last time this bastard did this it was supposed to be two weeks. Now it’s “at least three” which could mean several more months. Either everyone needs to to push back and say no or everyone is going to lose their business this time. What will you do? Hoping to hear back from some local businesses owners affected by this.

    0

  3. I would not call him a bastard and i think he’s trying to do what he can in a very dynamic environment, but I do agree further closures are a bad call. He should mandate a more strict safer at home order for those who are in the high mortality zone (that data is well known). This would have the same effect of lowering hospitalizations, but with the benefits of allowing those those who want to go out to do so (most cases are not symptomatic, and we also know who is highly unlikely to need hospitalization) and those businesses who want to remain open to do so as well.

    0

  4. I don’t get the hate on the gov. Look at the spanish flu, it killed over 50,000,000+ over two years and those are just estimates!!!! Compared to that virus, the first 3 months for us compared to that virus first 3 months are worse! I’m sorry you can’t go to the beach, get something to eat downtown in air conditioning, or go see a movie. I’m pretty sure we all want to save lives, people need to stop being dumb about little things and stop bashing Newsom. He’s trying to save as many lives in our state, if you have a better idea PLEASEEEEEEEEE do tell…..

    0

  5. Hi I own an esthetic business! So far I’ve been open half a week, I paid the whole time shut. It’s hard bc I’m super busy this week but I feel the fear starting again with the increase in cases, I feel we will be shut again soon. The next few weeks and months are crazy slow. I lost a lot of clients bc I followed the rules and some clients saw ppl that were willing to see them illegally. I’ve lost a lot of relationships that I’ve build the last 12 years bc of the pandemic. Many of my older clientele has not called, which I completely understand. I understand it all. It’s just sad. I’m sad for my business but I’m more sad for the way of life we’ve lost. I really have no idea what the future is for me and my business. I have children and I’m grappling with the fact that I may give up my career I loved to homeschool. I’m not mad, I’m just sad and when we close I could hold on for a good while but the unknown of how long makes me want to pull out so I don’t go down with the ship. When this is over, I can always restart.

    0

  6. They could restrict beaches to moving activities only: walking, swimming, surfing, but no lying about sunning and socializing. It would be a shame to close off the ocean itself—it is very big, with space for lots of people to swim and paddle safely.

    0

  10. 57% of the cases in the entire State of CA are in the 18-49 age group. Santa Barbara County’s numbers are similar. Younger people may not need to be hospitalized as much as older people, but that’s hardly a consolation.

    0

  12. When is he going to close the southern border?? It is a FACT that there are people coming up from our southern border and overwhelming the hospitals. Imperial and SD county hospitals are being hit hard. Many news agencies and government Agencies and hospitals are reporting this

    0

  13. This age group was not even being tested before. No one seems to remember 6 weeks ago when the mantra was “if your treatment is not going to change, we aren’t testing you”. THIS IS WHY THE NUMBERS ARE GOING UP. Newsom needs to pull his head out and understand what the data is saying.

    0

  19. What I’m saying is that if you follow the data which they have been cramming down our throats since day one, it’s clear who is most impacted and may end up in the hospital if they get this virus. If those people (and i don’t think it is age ONLY, its a combination of factors) stay home the hospitalizations will go down while the business can remain open if they choose. I’m 55 and I go out, run, ride, walk, hike visit state street and i’m not worried. It should be my decision unless i do fall into the high mortality zone, then I totally agree with being forced to stay home.

    0

  22. Overall I think Newsome is doing a fantastic job. Even if I disagree with a percentage of what’s being mandated. And of course we all disagree with what we being asked to do. Nobody wanted this! I sense the majority of his failings are political in nature. He seems to fight the tide and buck the trend on some political expectations. Fighting battles on a few while giving in to others.

    0

  25. Right now with all the new Covid-19 cases, the goalposts need to be moved! Duh – At least he and the Public Health Depts. are doing something where the leader of this country just tweets his white supremacy hate messages.
    Talk about “coming out of the closet!” This “moron ” is coming out as a full-on white power zealot. He’ll probably show his dog whistle leaping base his KKK Lifetime membership card along with a photo of him a few years ago at a much different, nighttime rally. Yikes!

    0

  26. Do you wear a seatbelt in your vehicle and on an airplane?
    Do you abide by the speed limit?
    Do you typically lock your front door & close the gare door at night if you have one?
    Why not wear a mask then?
    It helps slow down the possible transmission of the Covid for all.
    It’s only a political issue with the guy at the top.
    “What have you got to lose?”

    0

  29. It’s concerning that while things are being shutdown in the midst of this surge in cases, the Santa Barbara Public Heath Department dispensed with weekend updates last month and now appears to have abandoned the daily updates as well. Their last status report was Monday.

    0

  30. I’m so with you Rob. I’m also 55. Bike, run, walk, visit downtown (no shopping or eating) just to see who is there and what is happening. I have zero concern for this “virus” and my health. Never had the flu and don’t plant on catching anything anytime soon.

    0

  34. I don’t care what they open or what they close. I will be safe at home, waiting for the statistics to tell me it’s time to resume my normal activities. Turns out, my home rocks, we have a fat garden, building up a little home gym, enjoying many new hobbies and are catching up on years of DIY projects including fun play structures for the kids. The pandemic has made me realize how vapid my home town has become…no one can cook, no one can clean, no one can fix their own stuff, just whine about masks and their inability to eat at their favorite overpriced tourist trap.

    0

  35. UPDATE: June 30, 2020 – The #SantaBarbaraCounty Public Health Department is transitioning data platforms related to #COVID19. Due to this transition the following will occur:
    – No case report for today, June 30, 2020.
    – Case reports will resume on July 1, 2020.

    0

  36. I’m with you Monkeyboy – since all of this started our garden and our aquariums have benefitted greatly – I’ve finished projects around the house that have been on hold – and cooked great meals in our own kitchen.

    0

  37. ROB – maybe you missed all the recent reports of lifelong complications in YOUNG HEALTHY people who have overcome covid? Take a look, you may reconsider you outdated position that only old and unhealthy people need to worry. This is not “the flu.” This thing is literally crippling people with no pre-existing conditions. Here, I’ll get you started…….. “It has been very scary, especially because many of the people we treated were very young – many in their 30s and 40s, even an 18-year-old.” (https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200622-the-long-term-effects-of-covid-19-infection) —– “…fibrosis cases show that even young people who survive the disease can have lasting complications.” (https://www.healthline.com/health-news/lifelong-lung-damage-the-serious-covid-19-complication-that-can-hit-people-in-their-20s#What-is-post-COVID-fibrosis?) —– “As all this preliminary research shows, we are still in the early days of understanding what this virus might mean for the growing number of Covid-19 survivors” (https://www.vox.com/2020/5/8/21251899/coronavirus-long-term-effects-symptoms).

    0

  38. 3:41 – That’s nice you have “zero concern” for a virus you apparently think is a joke and have no intention on catching it. Tell you what, go take your nonsense somewhere far away from others. It’s people like you spreading this thing through your sheer ignorance and refusal to consider others.

    0

  39. Why no pull back on hotels and vacation rentals? It seems logical. No place to stay then dramtically less community spread. Too many tax dollars for the till you won’t be able to waste, fearless leaders?

    0

  41. SBRYSA perfect example of why businesses operating illegally should be fined. They are poachers and thiefs. And immoral. Fine them asap and hard. Don’t reward their behavior which punishes the decent, moral abiding citizens.

    0

  43. I’m now on medical and food stamps for the first time in my life, I wouldn’t exactly call that privileged. I just realize there is no longer anything I can do, it is what it is, it’s out of my hands

    0

  44. I wouldn’t count that out. In Sweden which was vilified for not locking, the daily deaths are approaching 0. Daily deaths peaked in early April and have been in steady decline since. Now the daily deaths are about to burn out. https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/sweden/ Georgia looks like it’s also on the same trajectory. It looks like their daily deaths will approach 0 in less than a month’s time. https://dph.georgia.gov/covid-19-daily-status-report You can slowly peel off the bandage and prolong the agony or rip it off fast and get on with your life.

    0

  45. I would be careful about using Sweden as an example. Compared to all the other Scandinavian countries combined (all of which practice strict social distancing and are ahead of Sweden in approaching zero deaths per day), Sweden has many times the number of cases, deaths, and deaths per million.

    0

  46. Your Sweden example is laughable. Sweden is a poor micro model. Sweden’s lax strategy on COVID resulted in far too many deaths as compared to their neighbors. Drink the koolaid. Travel from Sweden isn’t welcome in European countries either.

    0

  47. Worldometer is not a very reliable site as far as data quality. You’d be better off with a real medical site like Johns Hopkins University. Citations below from the Wikipedia article on them: ====================================================================================== “Worldometer has faced criticism over transparency of ownership, lack of citations to data sources, and unreliability of its COVID-19 statistics and rankings. The website reported that 18,000 people recovered from coronavirus in Spain on April 24, compared to the Spanish government figure of 3,105 recoveries for that day.” ====================================================================================== “Edouard Mathieu, the data manager of Our World in Data, stated that “Their main focus seems to be having the latest number [of COVID-19 cases] wherever it comes from, whether it’s reliable or not, whether it’s well-sourced or not.”” ====================================================================================== “Virginia Pitzer, a Yale University epidemiologist, said that the site is “legitimate”, but flawed, inconsistent, and containing errors.” ====================================================================================== “On the English Wikipedia, editors reached a consensus not to cite Worldometer for coronavirus statistics.”

    0

  49. Good luck with that. If one were to just watch the news today, the results of that narrow, “It’s all about me” are on display for the whole world to see, and they are laughing at us, and then they are crying for us. But, since you are exceptional and immune, do your thing! Live free and die!

    0

  50. I understand the limitations of Worldometer, but the JHU site is terribly user unfriendly on my iPad. Most of the time both converge on to the results. For in the US I prefer going directly to the department of health for an individual state If I doubt the WoM data. There can be a lot of uncertainty in reporting the number of cases, but it’s the death count that matters to me. In Iran they can’t get their death curve to extinguish for unknown reasons.

    0

  54. Sad truth is when more are already dead, there is fewer to die. Sweden or not, it applies to all places. That’s the outcome we are trying to prevent: to prevent the natural course of death march. Take precautions to avoid the trap of the spiral

    0

  56. This is a very bad development for Santa Maria. The virus cases were already higher than the rest of the county indicating lack of adherence to the protocols necessary to minimize the spread. With such a large outbreak of cases, everyone there really needs to concentrate on physical distancing, social distancing, wearing masks, fastidious hand cleanliness, and limiting contact with non-household members.

    0

  57. Oh dear. California has 200,000 cases, and 6,000 deaths.
    Sweden has 69,000 cases and 5,300 deaths.
    Today, reported in Fortune Magazine:
    “Sweden’s government has initiated a commission to investigate its controversial approach to the Covid-19 pandemic. Sweden has taken a different path compared to most European countries by keeping much of society open and by recommending social distancing and self-isolation rather than imposing a blanket lockdown. That strategy has resulted in a much higher death rate than in neighboring countries, according to Johns Hopkins University data.”
    The Sweden thing – not relevant.

    0

  59. They ar only testing those presenting symptoms. That is why the “positivity” numbers are going up. Yet cases of any consequence remain extremely rare in our county of nearly one hal million people. Why is there such a dedicated misinformation campaign going on here. Who has a vested interest keeping this craziness going, based upon threats, speculation, and misguided “data”. Who has what to gain, repeatedly doing this?

    0

  60. A better example is Rhode Island. Rhode Island is the most densely populated state in the US and has completely reopened (implemented phase 3) and there has been no spike in cases. Their testing rate is one of the highest in the nation and their positive rate is only 1.5%. Take a look at their trend line going towards zero. They have been successful because they require masks to prevent spread of the disease.
    Rhode Island (population of 1.06 million) reported 27 new cases on July 1. About 1,800 people were tested on July 1, for a positive rate of about 1.5%. 60 coronavirus patients were in the hospital, with 11 in the ICU on ventilators.

    0

  62. MAC: How did you get that number? Since (not including) 6/29 I see positives reported out of 779 new tests, which is 34.4% (268/779*100). I’m not sure this is great metric, since the number of tests reported each day fluctuates wildly and some days this positivity rate can be quite low (6% on the previous 6/26 report, and 4.4% on 6/25). I’ve found that a more stable number is just the % positive out of total test to date, which rose from 7.0 to 7.4 during the interval in question, and was 7.1 on the previous two dates (6/26 and 6/25).

    0

  63. Gov. Gavin Newsome has my vote of confidence. Thanks to him, CA was the first state to go on lockdown. Because of him, I and many others have managed to avoid this debilitating, horrible virus. Thank you, Gov. Newsome.

    0

  65. Death rate is declining because the demographic epicenter of the pandemic has moved to a younger cohort, plus some treatments have been developed. But being “recovered” in the sense of not testing positive and not being dead doesn’t mean a patient doesn’t have debilitating damage that may last a lifetime. Plus, the surge in cases is threatening to overwhelm hospital capacity in Arizona and Texas, which will definitely result in more deaths.

    0

  66. DTOM – the problem lies with having tens of thousands of outsiders who don’t act responsibly since it’s not their home coming to our beaches, downtown, gas stations, restaurants, etc spreading the virus and then leaving us here to deal with it. Furthermore, why should WE, the people who pay property tax and other taxes here, have to stay home until the tourists leave? You’re clearly not from here or haven’t been here long. Absolutely no sense of protecting/taking care of your fellow residents.

    0

  67. To a the whiners on her about how insensitive I am for mentioning my home. I lived in studios most of my SB single life. It doesn’t matter where you live, you can always put a tomato in a pot, patch a hole in the wall or take up sourdough baking. You don’t need a house or yard to make your home a healthy place to wait out this virus.

    0

  69. It’s a blood disease! Your circulatory system takes it all through your body. Age only makes death more likely, not damaged organs & lower immunity that you’ll live with the rest of your life. Small term gain, long-term liability.

    0

  71. Please sign a waver for medical attention. It won’t matter to you since you have decided not to get it and will save the community money and hospital space in case you could be wrong. Currently, you are only betting other people’s health and money.

    0

  74. Is there any info on why hospitalizations are increasing but death rates aren’t? Is it a better understanding of how to treat the most critically ill with steroids, remsedivir, etc? The death rate in Ventura is about 3% of hospitalizations, is that acceptable for us?

    0

  75. Go all the way: Close 101 at the Ventura County line; checkpoints at the southbound 101 tunnel–no admittance to SM residents; close the Pass; armed PT boats to patrol the coast and stop any inbound boats for inspection if harbored here, otherwise fine them heavily and force them to go around, oil tankers included. Air lift groceries, medical supplies and toilet paper. And beer.

    0

  76. Everybody hates taxes, until they try to take away the services they want. Police and fire take up the majority of City spending, should we get rid of them? Street maintenance, water treatment, planning and development, parking garages, get rid of them? Really the argument seems to be that government agencies are inefficient but there are plenty of examples of inefficient and corrupt businesses and hardly anyone wants to get rid of them.

    0

  77. That’s great, monkey boy and others staying at home; so am I, except for dog walking and food shopping BUT we need to remember that most people in Santa Barbara are renters, living in apartments, without a garden or, for many any outside space. ( And if the planning commission has its way, without any outside space in new apartment buildings.) it’s very difficult to spend most of one’s time, for such a long time, inside, especially now that it’s summer. It must be close to hellish for families, jobless, with children.

    0

  79. MONKEYBOY what an insensitive comment. Many people rent and live in smaller places some with tiny kitchens. Not everyone has the luxury of a larger home, garden, money to DIY and build their kids large playgrounds. Or the $$$. You’re fortunate. Why not be humble and more empathetic towards those stuck in smaller places with little private outside space to hang out in during this pandemic? Reminds me of those critical of others while they sit in their large homes with libraries to work out of and pools to swim in while locked away.

    0

  83. CSF – I was taking the number of positives on 07/01 (3164) minus the number of positives on 06/29 (2896) divided by the difference in total number of tests on those dates (42723 – 41166), to get 268 / 1557, giving 17.21%.

    0

Tree and Plant ID’s

Local Singer Hosts Virtual Concert for Residents at Marian Extended Care Center