More San Francisco North Bay businesses get OK to reopen from coronavirus restrictions, but Marin, Sonoma slow the process
When the state Department of Public Health on June 5 cleared the way for business sectors in phase 3 to begin reopening - dependent on individual counties formally attesting to readiness - some employers moved ahead more cautiously than others.
Newly allowed to reopen in phase 3 are family entertainment centers, winery tasting rooms, bars, zoos and museums, gyms and fitness centers, and hotels for travel and tourism.
There are variances among the counties in the North Bay region, with some approved business sectors reopening shortly after the state made its announcement, while others have been advised to wait another week, until June 12.
Napa County
That's the case for Napa County, whose economy is reliant on tourism and hospitality businesses. Some employers have gone ahead and reopened, while others are holding back a bit longer.
Chuck Meyer, owner of Napa Palisades Saloon, has chosen to wait until the last weekend of June.
“It just doesn't make sense to open yet,” the owner said, explaining the saloon has 50 seats inside and only about a dozen outside. The saloon is being reconfigured to allow for social distancing in a relatively small space that was designed for patrons to gather together.
Meyer is currently working with the county's planning commission to approve additional outdoor seating in a public park behind the restaurant, allowing him to get closer to being able to accommodate full seating capacity.
The city's department of parks and recreation also is involved in the approval, which Meyer said is expected to be decided this week.
Meanwhile, three months ago, just before the pandemic, Meyer was set to open a new deli, First and Franklin Marketplace in downtown Napa. He is now set to introduce the eatery on June 15. He did a soft opening on Monday.
Long-time Italian eatery Filippi's Pizza Grotto, across from Oxbow Market, never had to completely close. Being a pizzeria, takeout orders already accounted for a good portion of business, said owner Tom Finch.
He fully reopened the restaurant a couple of weeks ago, when the county allowed inside dining to resume. Still, he's finding some customers are uncomfortable and are coming back little by little.
“We're back to business, as usual as we can be,” he said.
Marin County
Marin County doesn't anticipate opening businesses that qualify under the governor's Stage 3 classification yet.
"We are not there yet. We still have several Phase 2 re-openings to conduct. However, we hope to get there soon," county spokeswoman Laine Hendricks said.
The county administrative office plans to meet with its health department to get a timeline and guidance of how to move forward with locations such as gyms and museums.
The county announced last week it would open the door for churches to have outdoor services.
Marin County's reopening pace has more often than not followed that of other North Bay governments.
Hendricks cited two main reasons for that. The county situated just north of San Francisco has not qualified for the state's status mandate, and the case data “is not as positive as Sonoma and Napa, meaning we have a higher per capita case count and more severe death rate,” she said.
Sonoma County
The county's health officials on Friday took the most significant steps yet toward reopening a wider range of local businesses and activities, lifting pandemic restrictions that have barred people from restaurant dining rooms, shopping malls, hair salons and houses of worship for nearly three months.
At 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Dr. Sundari Mase, Sonoma County's health officer, issued a new health order effective Saturday at 12:01 a.m., allowing resumption of in-store retail shopping at outlets where it had not already been permitted. They include indoor dining at restaurants, wineries and brewpubs, in-person church services and haircuts and styling at barbershops and salons.
Jimmy Scales, general manager of Coddingtown mall, said June 5 that excitement was building among mall vendors and employees for reopening the following day. Scales said he received confirmation from a number of vendors that they would be ready for shops to reopen inside the mall.
Solano County
When the state announced that approved counties could move into the third phase of business reopenings, Solano County that evening announced such businesses could reopen Monday, as long as they had posted county signage that they were following industry-specific safety guidance.
“We're on the timeline with the governor at this point,” said Jayleen Richards, public health administrator.
Solano Brewing Company is gearing up to reopen its tasting room on the edge of Vacville, according to co-proprietor Audrey Dawson. The brewery has been selling prefilled crowlers and growlers for pick-up since the shutdown.
