Contra Costa County residents may again enjoy outdoor swimming pools, outdoor seating at restaurants and dog parks under a new health officer order released today.
The order, effective 5 p.m. today, also allows for outdoor religious services of up to 100 people, indoor religious services of up to 12 people, use of outdoor picnic and barbecue spaces, and overnight camping for people belonging to the same household.
Because of the progress made in the fight against COVID-19, Contra Costa health officers feel confident opening additional businesses and activities. The State of California has determined that while counties can move slower than state in reopening, they cannot move more quickly. The openings announced today bring Contra Costa County in closer alignment to state guidelines. It also aligns with other Bay Area counties taking similar steps.
“We have made great progress slowing COVID-19 in our county,” said Candace Andersen, chair of the Contra Costa Board of Supervisors. “I want to offer a heartfelt thank you to all who suffered and sacrificed to follow these health orders throughout this pandemic. I know it has not been easy. But you have helped save lives.”
This order follows a modification earlier this week that allowed offices and many retail businesses to reopen and created guidance for small gatherings including people from different households.
Previous health orders requiring physical distancing and face coverings in public spaces remain in effect. Contra Costa residents should also continue to emphasize handwashing and other hygiene measures in their daily lives to reduce their risk of becoming infected.
“COVID-19 is still circulating in our community, and we need to take precautions to prevent outbreaks,” said Dr. Chris Farnitano, the county health officer. “Another way we can keep ourselves and our families safe is to get tested, even if we feel well.”
The new order includes guidance for safely conducting the newly permitted activities, including requirements for businesses. Details, including the full text of the order, are available at cchealth.org/coronavirus.
Honestly. lack of a medical grade mask should be a minimal (but compounding) fine. I still see people that think ther’ye above it.
The protesters, looters and vandals certainly thought they were above. They also violated the county orders about large gatherings. The county didn’t enforce the order.
I would be happy to wear a medical-grade mask if one could be found! I wear the homemade ones – those are the only ones I’ve found to purchase.
??? Not only is a “medical-grade” mask not required, it’s not even recommended – presumably because they want those to be easily available to medical staff.
@Karen,
In everyday settings for non-healthcare people, the masks offer little to no protection, at best they may provide a reminder to you/others to not touch your face, or a barrier in case you try to do so. But for the people who totally dig wearing them and shaming others. the mask’s primary purpose is to virtue signal one’s slavish, cuck-like obedience.
I have never wore a mask. When a business confronts me, I leave. Has nothing to do with being above anything. Give me a break.
Not to put too fine a point on it, but even medical professionals are not always wearing them. In at least one case, an N95 mask was blamed for asphyxiation of a driver who lost consciousness, resulting in a solo accident.
My HOA pool is still going to be closed 😭
Bolt cutters
What the name of your HOA? I also live in a condo and got swimming pool too
Are u kidding? What’s their reasoning?
Not good enough.
We should be well into Phase 3 by now
No, it is moving too fast. We still need to be under lockdown. It is the government’s job to keep us safe.
Anyone know when gyms are gonna reopen ?
It’s just as well that CV is wrong about the governments job. Because the government failed to keep us safe this week!
Let’s correct the narrative that we have made sacrifices, but that our suffering has saved lives. We did no such thing. GOVERNMENT ordered the complete shutdown of the economy and medical care systems. Due to that, we SHIFTED death to a different demographic. Instead of people dying from Covid-19, people died of strokes, heart attacks, suicide, homicide, undiagnosed illnesses, domestic violence, you name it. And yet to come: those that will die from starvation (an estimated 265,000,000 world wide).
There are and will be many more deaths due to the shut down then there would have ever been from Covid-19 is a more nuanced mitigation approach.
Very True
100k+ Americans have died from covid since Feb.
While this is certainly a very good discussion point…. the actual data in deaths does not support this. All death numbers are tracked and there has not been an increase in deaths other than COVID like you suggest.
State governments ordered the shutdowns.
States varied on when and to what extent shutdowns were. They are also ones deciding to open or ones dragging their feet. Amazing unelected bureaucrats were given so much power. There will be years of research done on mistakes and wigi board death predictions and ventilator shortages.
What should be criminally prosecuted is manner in which our elderly were NOT protected by government. Final numbers are not out but has been reported 41% of deaths were in high density elder care settings.
@Trip,
Thank you for pointing out a very significant piece of evidence supporting the fact that many deaths which normally would have attributed to other causes have instead been shifted to the China Virus column.
@greg,
Yes 100K, of which NEARLY HALF occurred in some type of LTC long-term care facility, many in CA, MI, PA, NJ, NY nursing homes where those Governors ORDERED unprepared nursing homes to accept China Virus patients. So…any more scare-mongering out-of-context numbers you’d like to throw out there?
You don’t know that and never will because of the successful of the shutdown.
@Oz,
Um, we already have empirical evidence the lockdowns were total BS, they were at best “neutral” and at worst made things worse by taking 100 millions of people out of work and school then making them all stay inside together. And when there’s no significant spike due to the rioters/looters, it will be further evidence of how absurd and overkill the lockdowns were.
@trippy flint, we don’t really know enough about this yet. There are a lot of excess deaths nationwide that are uncategorized: some of them are presumably uncounted Covid-19 deaths. Some of them aren’t. And it’s become widely talked about by doctors and hospital officials that they aren’t seeing the typical numbers of heart disease patients, typical numbers of strokes, etc. Which means some people are staying home who have life-threatening situations. How many have died like that? We don’t know.
I am in the statistics!
My life long friends Healthy Husband, Committed Suicide.
Why all because of this damn Corna Virus and all the HYPE surrounding it. This was and is no worse than any other virus we have discovered in the last hundred years. I am going to be blunt here.
But more people have unprotected Sex Daily and pass a life long virus that kills daily. Sure we have stuff to slow it now but still no cure but slow it. However just as many New Cases discovered daily. It’s deadly but we don’t see a stay in home order here. It’s spread more easily and faster after a drunk night parting with unknowns than any Corona.
Why not all the hype here?? Because it doesn’t fit someone’s agenda. Humans are amazingly sheep of a different flock.. SMH
That is absolutely not true. The hospitals were open for patients with serious problems. Where are you getting this fake news? Honestly don’t you think this information would have been common knowledge. Many more deaths due to shut down? You think? NOT. Good grief folks please use your common sense.
Sorry, ilovepoopcorn, but you’re the one who needs to use common sense. The hospitals were NOT open for things like routine physicals, where cancer, heart disease, etc. are usually discovered and diagnosed. How many of these undiagnosed conditions led to, or will lead to, death from strokes, heart attacks, cancer, etc. Who knows? But I assure you it’s a significant number. Suicides and domestic violence have increased dramatically, as well. Just because you don’t seek out that information, that doesn’t mean it’s not readily available.
I say AMEN to Chuckie’s Wife.
Does this mean we can finally close off Todas Santos Plaza for a month so the restaurants can expand their outdoor seating onto the sidewalks?
Great idea! It’s easy to drive around the area if necessary. Here! Here!
Some protesters will probably want take-out!
We were never in any real danger and I am so angry that the powers that be felt it just to destroy lives for the express purpose of destabilizing our political landscape. Look at how fast they dropped the covid-19 narrative as soon as something juicier came along.
@anonamel, agree 100%.
Just like Aesop’s dog, they are absolutely driven by whatever appears “juicier” at any given moment. This, too, will be abandoned in favor of the next big thing.
Yes, pools can “reopen”
I person per lane for lap swimming.
No more than 1 person per 300 square feet in pool. So, our neighborhood pool, a six lane, 2700 square foot pool can have no more than 8 people in it. And no one can gather on deck, unless watching another swimmer for safety.
Sounds fun, huh?
Are u kidding me? Just when I thought my kid’s would at least be able to swim and have some fun.
@Carpe
Sounds like a plan.
Does it count as a protest if we are protesting the onerous restrictions? Asking for a friend.
Some lowlife lets go in the pool and it’s all over. too many secretions to worry about in a small body of water. in the eyes up the nose and swallowing. Not safe, chlorine would have to be too potent for a human.
No one could swim in the Polio scare either.
Open swimming pools are okay but hair cuts are not? Ducky!
I went to Benicia today for a haircut
I wasn’t able to get an appointment in Benicia until June 16. too bad we have to go out of the county for personal care. I wonder how many salon owners in Contra Costa are going to go bankrupt.
Phase 1, 2, 3, protesters and looters allowed to form large gatherings of 100 or more, no social distancing needed and masks only required to keep from being identified.
The rest of society, HAHA, too bad, you still have restrictions and we’ll let the angry mobs do what they want to you.
Oh yes people lost their businesses and livelihoods, many are on the brink of homelessness but we got a “thank you” so it’s all okay now everyone!!
California is also deciding to reopen bars and gyms etc..next week. I think they’re seeing the narrative shift against them BIG time and are trying to stay ahead of it.
Also, once these things all return all this civil unrest will calm down. The college students will go back to the bars instead of protesting.
Drinks on me tonight at the outdoor dining area of lazy dog!
That place has gone so far downhill… let’s just say it’s gone to the dogs! Ignorance is bliss in the management. 🙁 woof!
Really, Massa? I can go to the pool and eat outside again, Massa? Ohhhh, you are a generous powerful and benevolent massa, Massa!
The pool has chlorine. Also, unless you know that your salon is making sure that the charis/shampoo bowls/ combs etc.etc. are sterilized after each client, then you are putting yourself at risk for infection. Oui? Non?
This says indoor religious services of up to 12 people. Is the “12” a typo? I thought they had already allowed up to 100 in indoor services as long as family groups can be spaced out.
Many churches can seat thousands…absolutely ridiculous to only allow for 12 people inside. I won’t even mention that the county allowed hundreds if not thousands to gather in crowds to protest.
Yeah, it’s truly ludicrous. I mean, if they have to be outside and spaced out, then why limit it to 100? And inside, why 12 (that would be funny if it weren’t so arbitrary and tyrannical, in a petty way)? Doesn’t it depend on the space? Some churches are small rooms in a strip mall. Some are enormous buildings holding thousands of people. Sorry, you can only have twelve!
Protests come along and everybody is happy to get with the groupthink and allow that some kinds of assembly are important enough to counterbalance some risk of increased infection. But not religious assemblies! Not that kind! The other part of the Bill of Rights, that’s the one we meant!
Concord Tap house to reopen!!!! Lumpia here I come!!!!
Not to eschew the conversation here, but can anyone recommend a good dog park in Concord for a first-timer? I adopted a sweet little Spaniel mix from ARF right before we all got shut in and closed out. We go for walks, but he really needs to socialize and run around.
I hear good things about Baldwin Dog Park.
https://www.facebook.com/BaldwinParkDogPark/
There’s also the Paw Patch in Newhall but I don’t know much about it.
https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-paw-patch-concord
We go to the dog park a lot, don’t like Baldwin too much, park itself is decent but it’s a sketchy area, and too many Pit Bulls…no I don’t hate them but when they’re brought there by neck tattoo guy/girl then pardon me if I have my doubts how well they’re trained/socialized.
Newhall is pretty good, plus you can take a good walk around the lake, but do have to mind the goose poop.
Paso Nogal in Pleasant Hill is nice, and our favorite is Heather Farm in Walnut Creek.
Thank you!
Keep that in your hat for the next round, in 2020.
Plenty of goose scat at Heather Farms, too, unless they have cleaned it up since I was there.
I’m very thankful that the supervisors listened and enacted the recommendations they received from the public about the most recent health order. The most recent health order was not only unconstitutional but also poorly written, unrealistic and not enforceable. Thank you to the Supervisors! Please continue to push Dr. F. towards a total re-opening!
So, get tested it says even if you feel well?
Ok, Why? If I feel well and come back positive. What then? Going to ship us off to a island? This seems so silly to me. What is it I am not informed on..
So you come back positive, does one line up at the firing squad? I mean seriously that comment makes no sense, without a solution to the out come.
I want to understand how this helps? From what I understand someone can test positive and never come down with it. So basically it doesn’t matter not unless your actually sick. Right?
It’s because you can pass it on before you feel sick. So if you get a positive test they tell you to self-quarantinw fore two weeks and they ask you to let them know who you have been in close contact with I’m the previous few days. Then they invite those people to be tested, rinse, repeat. If done right it makes sense. But the county needs to do more than just invite people generally to get tested more. They should offer testing particularly to certain communities at risk, and to people whose jobs put them in contact with many people.
So–are restaurants open if they have outdoor seating?
I think we are experiencing the end-stage of Coronamania. Where we destroy our civilization and leave future archeologists puzzled as to why it suddenly collapsed. Still looking for my end-of-the-world haircut, and I’m not talking about the tax increases.