Orange County retailers, restaurants, barbershops, hair salons approved for reopening, Gov. Gavin Newsom says

Nick Steffen, left, Mateo Stanford, in red shirt, and Julianne Zenkus eat out at the Longboard Restaurant and Pub in Huntington Beach on Tuesday.

By Sara CardineStaff Writer

May 26, 2020 6:31 PM PT

Just in time for Memorial Day — a mainstay for local beach communities looking ahead to summertime sales receipts — Gov. Gavin Newsom gave the green light Saturday for Orange County restaurants and retail businesses to begin serving more customers, with limitations.

County officials requested Thursday a variance that would allow local businesses to accelerate into Phase 2 of the state’s Pandemic Resilience Roadmap, a plan that ties four phases of reopening to targets relating to coronavirus infection trends, testing and contact tracing.

Phase 2 permits in-person dining reservations and retail shopping with distancing and face mask protocols in place. Some personal service businesses may open, including car washes, pet groomers, tanning facilities and landscape gardening services.

The second phase also allows for the opening of outdoor museums as well as some manufacturing businesses and offices, though teleworking is still recommended.

And in a new announcement Monday, Newsom announced barbershops and hair salons would be allowed to reopen in counties where variances have been approved, marking the beginning steps of a transition into Phase 3.

James Coelho gives a haircut to Ramon Ramirez, of San Pedro at Makin Waves Salon in Huntington Beach on Tuesday.

For approval to move fully into Phase 2, Orange County had to demonstrate daily COVID-19 hospitalization rate changes of less than 5% throughout a seven-day period or show no more than 20 hospitalizations in any one day for the past 14 days.

The county also had to prove lower infection rates — fewer than 25 new cases per 100,000 residents in the past 14 days, or less than 8% positive results among countywide coronavirus testing in a seven-day period.

In an attestation report submitted Thursday to the state’s Public Health Department, Orange County health officer Dr. Nichole Quick showed the average daily percent change in COVID-19 hospitalizations between May 13 and 19 was .91%.

Quick also showed that, in the same time period, only 7.95% of the 10,147 coronavirus tests issued countywide returned positive results.

Orange County officials had to demonstrate the capacity to test 1.5 in every 1,000 residents (about 4,800, Quick estimated in the report) and provide 15 staff per 100,000 county residents have been trained and are available to conduct contact tracing.

People walk along the Huntington Beach Pier after it opened on Tuesday for the first time since March.

Quick said the county had the capacity to perform more than 9,000 tests per day and assured more than 20 state and locally funded testing centers are conducting more than 7,000 tests weekly. She estimated the 477 contact tracers would be trained throughout Orange County by July 1.

“With this attestation, it is our goal to ensure all Orange County businesses have the confidence to open as safely and as soon as possible without concerns about the state order,” Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Michelle Steel said Saturday.

Before reopening, however, businesses must comply with certain protocols. They must:

Perform a detailed risk assessment and implement a site-specific protection plan

Train employees how to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and screen themselves for symptoms before reporting to work

Commit to individual control measures and screenings and implement disinfection and physical distancing protocols.

Post industry-specific checklists showing compliance in the workplace

“We understand that many businesses are hurting at this time and greatly want to reopen with as little issues as possible,” Supervisor Don Wagner said in Saturday’s statement. “However, the state is requiring training and assessments to be done prior to reopening. We ask that businesses work as best as they can to meet these guidelines.”

Huntington Beach

Legions of shoppers and beachgoers flocked to Huntington Beach for the Memorial Day weekend holiday, with some enjoying restaurant dining for the first time in months.

Mayor Lyn Semeta said in a release over the weekend the county’s meeting the readiness criteria set forth by the state was a positive beginning for area businesses.

“This is an incredible step forward for Huntington Beach and all Orange County cities,” Semeta said. “Moving further into Stage 2 will provide the lifeline that so many in our restaurant and retail industries need to survive this pandemic.”

Semeta announced a new website “HB Ready” has been set up to answer questions about the reopening and help business owners learn guidelines specific to their industries.

“[Business leaders] are committed to reopening safely to protect all employees and patrons, and we encourage our community to show their support, as more businesses find their way in these new times,” the Huntington Beach mayor said.

Beachgoers flock to the sand on the south side of the Huntington Beach Pier on Tuesday.

Costa Mesa

In Costa Mesa — where officials are working toward a tentative June 1 reopening of City Hall — Mayor Katrina Foley called Newsom’s recent announcement “encouraging” for local business owners.

“The last two months have been unprecedented, but all of our sacrifices and hard work truly paid off,” Foley said in a statement. “I am optimistic that together we can enter a new phase of reopening our local economy in a way that is safe and restores the vitality of our amazing local businesses.”

The mayor said a new collaboration “restore Costa Mesa” has been working to develop guidelines that would allow for the safe reopening of city commerce, while a shop local campaign called “Costa Mesa’s BAC” aims to impart the importance of shopping locally.

“I am grateful for the excellent partnership with our local business community and proud of their resilience,” Foley said. “We all share a collective commitment to safety as we move into this new stage of our economic recovery.”

South Coast Plaza plans to reopen its popular mall for in-store retail on Monday.

“We are thrilled to learn that we are now allowed to reopen to the public,” said Debra Gunn Downing, a spokeswoman for South Coast Plaza. “South Coast Plaza and its retailers and restaurants are ready with new social distancing measures and other significant protocols designed to provide a safe and welcoming shopping experience for our visitors. We will reopen on June 1 and share details about our new practices soon.”

Amy and Allen Phillips shop at Annette's Place on Balboa Island on Tuesday.

Newport Beach

Retail businesses at Newport Beach’s Fashion Island began opening to customers on Saturday, as owners implemented safety measures and guidelines, an associate said Tuesday. Representatives said the center, which had been offering meal takeout and delivery and some curbside pickup before Memorial Day weekend, could be fully reopened as soon as June 1.

News of the easing up of restrictions in Newport Beach followed on the heels of the city’s phased reopening May 18 of its City Hall building to the visiting public.

The city’s permit center was scheduled for an immediate reopening, with the building and safety counter on track to reopen after Memorial Day and all other services scheduled to resume June 1, with facial coverings and physical distancing guidelines in place.

Newport Beach libraries, the OASIS Senior Center and community centers remain closed until further notice, according to the city’s website.

Meanwhile, City Council members are to convene Tuesday to vote on the Fast Track Back to Business Initiative, an emergency permit waiver that would allow businesses and religious institutions to temporarily expand into parking lots, sidewalks or public property to maintain their usual occupancy.

“If tonight’s [item] passes, we’ll be looking at dedicating staff to fast track these permits,” city spokesman John Pope said Tuesday. “Safety and traffic are still going to be a concern … but we do want to be flexible and work with business owners to give them as much space as possible.”

Laguna Beach

City Council members in Laguna Beach will also meet Tuesday evening to discuss implementing an economic recovery and business development plan approved May 12, which could allow for the expansion of retail space into some public areas.

Council members will also consider postponing the conversion of Ocean Avenue to a one-way street until fall and approving and adopting a resolution that will allow for the proposed outdoor dining and entertainment on lower Forest Avenue.

If approved Tuesday, the panel would vote on a $145,703 contract with Coachella organizers Choura Events to establish “Promenade on Forest” by June 15.

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