ARTICLE
The New York Times reported on Tuesday what we all know too well in California — our economy is in a deep nosedive, unseen since the Great Depression, and concerns about a recovery are creeping into everyone’s mindset. The NY Times reported: “Locked down in their homes, the four former California governors clicked into a Zoom call and one after another described how they dealt with the crises that had defined their time in office. For Pete Wilson, it was the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Gray Davis evoked the electricity disaster that drove him out in a recall election, and Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jerry Brown lamented the Great Recession. But the former governors agreed that nothing they confronted was as dire or will be more consequential than what the current occupant of the office, Gov. Gavin Newsom, now faces.” You can read the full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/26/us/coronavirus-california-economy.html What is happening throughout California is paralleled here in Santa Cruz County. The economic impact is larger than ever imagined and the roadmap to recovery is now slowly taking place. The Employment Development Department (EDD) just announced the April unemployment numbers last Friday. The results are higher than the state, nearly 20% in Santa Cruz County and in the leisure & hospitality industry the number is a staggering 68%. On Monday, the California Department of Public Health announced the statewide re-opening of places of worship for religious services and in-store retail shopping. Modifications are required to keep Californians safe and limit the spread of COVID-19. Subject to approval by county public health departments, all retail stores can reopen for in-store shopping under previously issued guidelines. Under new guidance, places of worship can hold religious services and funerals that limit attendance to 25% of a building's capacity — or up to 100 attendees, whichever is lower — upon approval by the county department of public health. You can read the update release here: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/OPA/Pages/NR20-100.aspx More details of this announcement will come from the Governor during his daily noon news briefing as to what defines the guidelines and how our County Public Health Officer responds. Dr. Newel expects to make changes to the shelter in place order again this week. Easing restrictions on several industries, including office spaces, childcare (for all, not just essential workers), car washes, pet grooming, and low-risk outdoor activities. County Health and HSA are working towards meeting the State's criteria for reopening under Stage 2. They expect to complete and file the attestation confirming Santa Cruz County meets the criteria by June 2nd, for approval by the Board of Supervisors followed by State approval. With State approval, the Health Officer plans to fully implement Stage 2, including dine-in restaurants and retail, with the exception of schools. Of course, reopening is all dependent on case activity in our area and is subject to change. As we all experienced over the Memorial Day holiday, the warm summer weather drew large crowds to our city and county beaches. Some residents and visitors where walking around with face masks and practicing social distancing but most were not. We will soon learn if this leads to a spike in our infection reporting and if that plays any role in the County’s variance application. As I have written many times in our eNews, clear and transparent communication is key in working through any crisis. In Sunday’s Santa Cruz Sentinel, Susan True, the CEO of the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County hit the nail on the head. She eloquently stated: “Fear is a hard space to occupy. But living in hope means relying on trust during this scary and uncertain time. How can we make sure our community has the resources to survive and prosper again? How can we build trust as we move toward recovery? How can we reopen our economy safely to get families on the path to recovery?” True continued to make her point: “Clear communication builds trust. Acting on the insights and questions of the business community is critical. With the County, the Community Foundation has launched an Economic Recovery Council of 13 business and nonprofit leaders from sectors that are next in line to reopen. Council recommendations, guided by scientific expertise, will be shared with Santa Cruz County Health Officer Dr. Gail Newel as she issues guidance that helps businesses prepare for safe reopening.” The full guest opinion is here: https://www.santacruzsentinel.com/2020/05/24/guest-commentary-it-starts-with-trust/ As we look around our community and see people in masked faces, it is hard to see and feel if there is hope over fear behind each mask. All of us are yearning for hope, trust and confidence that we’re moving forward through these challenging times with a single purpose — re-open our businesses in a safe and healthy manner. Be calm, Stay Safe and Buy Local.
The New York Times reported on Tuesday what we all know too well in California — our economy is in a deep nosedive, unseen since the Great Depression, and concerns about a recovery are creeping into everyone’s mindset. The NY Times reported: “Locked down in their homes, the four former California governors clicked into a Zoom call and one after another described how they dealt with the crises that had defined their time in office. For Pete Wilson, it was the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Gray Davis evoked the electricity disaster that drove him out in a recall election, and Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jerry Brown lamented the Great Recession. But the former governors agreed that nothing they confronted was as dire or will be more consequential than what the current occupant of the office, Gov. Gavin Newsom, now faces.”
You can read the full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/26/us/coronavirus-california-economy.html
What is happening throughout California is paralleled here in Santa Cruz County. The economic impact is larger than ever imagined and the roadmap to recovery is now slowly taking place. The Employment Development Department (EDD) just announced the April unemployment numbers last Friday. The results are higher than the state, nearly 20% in Santa Cruz County and in the leisure & hospitality industry the number is a staggering 68%.
On Monday, the California Department of Public Health announced the statewide re-opening of places of worship for religious services and in-store retail shopping. Modifications are required to keep Californians safe and limit the spread of COVID-19. Subject to approval by county public health departments, all retail stores can reopen for in-store shopping under previously issued guidelines. Under new guidance, places of worship can hold religious services and funerals that limit attendance to 25% of a building's capacity — or up to 100 attendees, whichever is lower — upon approval by the county department of public health. You can read the update release here: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/OPA/Pages/NR20-100.aspx
More details of this announcement will come from the Governor during his daily noon news briefing as to what defines the guidelines and how our County Public Health Officer responds.
Dr. Newel expects to make changes to the shelter in place order again this week. Easing restrictions on several industries, including office spaces, childcare (for all, not just essential workers), car washes, pet grooming, and low-risk outdoor activities. County Health and HSA are working towards meeting the State's criteria for reopening under Stage 2. They expect to complete and file the attestation confirming Santa Cruz County meets the criteria by June 2nd, for approval by the Board of Supervisors followed by State approval. With State approval, the Health Officer plans to fully implement Stage 2, including dine-in restaurants and retail, with the exception of schools. Of course, reopening is all dependent on case activity in our area and is subject to change.
As we all experienced over the Memorial Day holiday, the warm summer weather drew large crowds to our city and county beaches. Some residents and visitors where walking around with face masks and practicing social distancing but most were not. We will soon learn if this leads to a spike in our infection reporting and if that plays any role in the County’s variance application.
As I have written many times in our eNews, clear and transparent communication is key in working through any crisis. In Sunday’s Santa Cruz Sentinel, Susan True, the CEO of the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County hit the nail on the head.
She eloquently stated: “Fear is a hard space to occupy. But living in hope means relying on trust during this scary and uncertain time. How can we make sure our community has the resources to survive and prosper again? How can we build trust as we move toward recovery? How can we reopen our economy safely to get families on the path to recovery?”
True continued to make her point: “Clear communication builds trust. Acting on the insights and questions of the business community is critical. With the County, the Community Foundation has launched an Economic Recovery Council of 13 business and nonprofit leaders from sectors that are next in line to reopen. Council recommendations, guided by scientific expertise, will be shared with Santa Cruz County Health Officer Dr. Gail Newel as she issues guidance that helps businesses prepare for safe reopening.” The full guest opinion is here:
https://www.santacruzsentinel.com/2020/05/24/guest-commentary-it-starts-with-trust/
As we look around our community and see people in masked faces, it is hard to see and feel if there is hope over fear behind each mask. All of us are yearning for hope, trust and confidence that we’re moving forward through these challenging times with a single purpose — re-open our businesses in a safe and healthy manner.
Be calm, Stay Safe and Buy Local.