WORDS TO LIVE BY

‘You can’t help getting older, but you don’t have to get old.’

ping centers must operate at 25% capacity, and grocery stores must operate at 50% capacity.

Professional sports can be played again, although without live audiences.

Schools in the county must remain closed for in-person instruction until the new case level is at or below seven cases per 100,000 per day for 14 consecutive days.

Grades K-6 may apply for a waiver when the county’s new case level decreases to 14 cases per 100,000 per day.

“I’m excited for all our barbers and hair stylists,” Lodi Chamber of Commerce chief executive officer and president Pat Patrick said.

“It’s long overdue in our opinion at the Chamber, and we’re thrilled they can get back to work,” he said. “I think the vast majority of these stylists and barbers are small business people who work hard for their money and have always done a great job at keeping their customers safe.”

Other businesses, such as restaurants, wineries, houses of worship, gyms and fitness centers, wineries and cardrooms must still operate outdoors. Family entertainment centers, theaters, museums and zoos and personal care services such as nail salons and estheticians must also still operate outdoors.

Bars, pubs, brewpubs and breweries can operate outdoors, but only if they offer sit-down meals.

Patrick said he didn’t understand why some businesses, such as bars

and churches, were still required to remain outdoors.

“I think this doesn’t make some (bars) happy,” he said. “I think they should social distance indoors, and I don’t think it would be any different from operating outdoors. As for the churches, I think many of them don’t see how they can allow casinos to operate inside, but not a church. In church you can at least skip a few seats and maintain social distancing. At a casino, you see all kinds of people shoulder to shoulder at the card tables.”

If the county moved into Tier 2, restaurants would be able to serve customers indoors, but only at 25% capacity. In Tier 3, restaurants could serve indoors at 50% capacity, and then 100% capacity in Tier 4, as long as social distancing and other safeguards are in place. A county can move backward by failing to meet tier criteria for two consecutive weeks, or if state officials see a rapid rise in hospitalizations, public health officials said.

To learn more about the state’s tier system, visit www.sjcphs.org and click on the Blueprint for A Safer Economy press release link.