Alameda County in orange, but wary
Santa Cruz also advances while Napa falls short
Alameda and Santa Cruz counties moved into the orange tier of California’s pandemic reopening plan Tuesday, allowing bars, offices and movie theaters to open indoors with modifications.
But in a twist, Napa County did not advance to the second-least-restrictive category of the state’s fourtier, colorcoded system because of rising case rates, a potentially worrying sign as the rest of the country grapples with a new surge in cases.
Before Tuesday’s announcement, San Francisco, Marin, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties already were in the orange tier, leaving Napa, Solano, Sonoma and Contra Costa as the only Bay Area counties still in the red, which is the second-most-restrictive tier.
Public health officials in Alameda County said they will align with the state’s rules for reopening without the more stringent restric
tions that some counties — such as San Francisco — have adopted.
“Our metrics have improved, but this pandemic is not yet in our rearview mirror,” said a statement from Dr. Nicholas Moss, Alameda County health officer. “Variants of the virus that causes COVID19 are circulating in our county, case rates are rising in other parts of the country and, while nearly a quarter of Alameda County residents aged 16 and older have been fully vaccinated, we aren’t at the levels required for broad community protection or immunity.”
Under the new designation, offices, movie theaters and bowling alleys can partially reopen. Restaurants and hair salons can increase indoor capacity. Bars, breweries and wineries that don’t typically serve food can also reopen outside.
Santa Cruz County officials also urged caution in moving forward with reopening activities.
“While transmission rates locally look positive and the county remains a leader in per capita vaccinations within the state, coronavirus cases are increasing globally and the B.1.1.7 variant has recently been found within Santa Cruz County,” a health department statement said, referring to the coronavirus mutation that emerged from England. “Vaccinated and unvaccinated residents are advised to continue wearing masks and practicing social distancing while in public.”
The news on Monday that Alameda County was anticipating the move to the orange tier was met with some hesitation by business owners in Oakland.
Kay Kim, the owner of Izza, a Japanese restaurant on Telegraph Avenue, said despite spacing out tables more than usual to allow for more than 6 feet apart, his customers still prefer to sit outside.
“People still want to avoid the inside,” he said.
At Kansai, another Japanese restaurant nearby, server Isaac Lee said more customers mean more business. But he said he was unsure whether the restaurant would increase its indoor capacity from 25% to 50%, as allowed.
“It means more tips so better for my own personal life,” Lee said. “But the entire community, I personally don’t think is ready yet.”
Chummy Alexanian, a tattoo artist at Tattoo 13, said the shop was closed for 10 months during the pandemic. The parlor reopened briefly in October before a surge caused another shutdown in December.
Since reopening in February, Alexanian said they have limited their capacity to only two tattoo artists at a time rather than five and prohibit customers from bringing friends. That likely won’t change if the county moves into the orange tier.
“We were closed for nearly a year,” he said. “It was a pain in the ass.”
Nearby at 17 Jewels Salon, hairstylist Jamie Edwards welcomed the news. Since reopening in February, Edwards has been limited to scheduling only one customer at a time. Now, she can allow more.
She said the pandemic has been “devastating” for business, but now, “Everyone is just trying to get back on their feet again.”
Laura Camp, the owner of Flying Studios, a yoga, dance and fitness center, said she is still teaching yoga outside, but her Temescal business was transformed into a children’s afterschool camp early in the pandemic since restrictions limited group fitness activities.
Despite the county’s orange tier status, Camp said she doesn’t know what the future will hold for her indoor fitness classes, but at least she can increase the number of children participating in her daily camp — though she’s not sure how many more kids she can take. She currently holds camp for 12 elementary school kids at a time.
“It’s been a really good silver lining,” Camp said. “Kids really need a lot of services right now.”
Alameda County must remain in the orange tier for at least three weeks before moving into the next tier, the yellow category, which has the least restrictions of any tiers currently assigned by the state.
“The key to keeping newly permitted activities open and moving Alameda County closer to the yellow tier is to continue practicing the safety measures we know work against COVID19: wearing masks whenever we leave home, watching our distance, washing our hands frequently, and limiting mixing with people from different households,” Moss said. “When it is your turn, get vaccinated with the first vaccine made available to you.”
Napa County had been on track to move to the orange tier this week, but its adjusted rate of new coronavirus cases fell into the red tier Monday, said Janet Upton, a spokeswoman for the county.