S.F. delays reopenings:
Barber hair salons, shops, museums, gyms, pools and other businesses will not be allowed to reopen Monday. The zoo can reopen, however.
San Francisco officials said Friday that a number of businesses — including barbershops, tattoo parlors, hair salons, manicurists, museums, gyms and pools — would not be allowed to reopen Monday, as the city had originally planned, to allow more time for public health professionals to monitor the surge in coronavirus cases that’s swept the region.
The San Francisco Zoo, however, will be allowed to reopen on schedule Monday. And shoppers will also be permitted to use reusable bags again.
City officials had hoped to reopen San Francisco’s shattered economy gradually — provided that the numbers of new coronavirus cases and hospitalizations remained stable. But as the virus roars back across the Bay Area and much of the rest of the country, the city has been forced to reevaluate its plans.
A decision on whether to reopen salons, gyms, museums and other businesses — or whether to postpone again — is expected around the middle of next week. Regardless of the decision, any business allowed to reopen will have to ensure both customers and employee wear masks at all times.
“COVID19 is still too prevalent in our community, and we need to be vigilant and take all the precautions that are proven to slow the spread,” Mayor London Breed said in a statement.
“Unfortunately, reopening businesses that will encourage gathering and interacting with people outside of your own household is not the safe thing to do right now. I know people want to continue reopening, but in order for that to happen we need to once again flatten the curve so that we’re able to do so,” she said.
Breed said Tuesday that the scheduled resumption of indoor restaurant dining and outdoor bars would be put on hold indefinitely. The stopandstart dynamic has frustrated business owners who are desperate to bring customers in the door, and who need time to plan and prepare for reopening.
But city officials have said repeatedly that all reopening plans are predicated on the state of the virus’ spread, namely the rate of new infections and the number of hospitalizations — both of which spiked this week in San Francisco.
San Francisco recorded 4,316 cases as of Friday morning and 50 deaths. The number of new cases has risen sharply and is nearly four times higher than the target goals set by health officials. The city is also more than doubling its target rate of hospitalizations, which is currently at 22%.
“Together, we can all improve the picture and speed up the pace of reopening by wearing face coverings, keeping your distance from others, washing your hands, and getting tested,” Health Director Dr. Grant Colfax said in a statement. “San Franciscans know what to do, we flattened the curve before and I am hopeful that we can beat back the current surge if we all do our part.”