San Joaquin County reopens dining, retail after COVID-19 restrictions
Indoor dining and retail returned to San Joaquin County on Thursday, just as its neighbor to the south emerged from these COVID-19 shutdowns.
The California Department of Public Health approved San Joaquin’s request, the county Office of Emergency Services said in a Facebook post. Stanislaus County achieved the same thing Wednesday after meeting state criteria for COVID-19 testing and hospitalizations.
Come on in, carefully
Restaurants and retailers in both counties can now go well beyond the curbside and delivery services that they have provided this spring. Employees and patrons still are urged to wear masks, to wash carefully and to keep at least 6 feet from non-household members.
“SJC dine-in restaurants MUST follow state guidance to support safe, clean environments for workers and customers,” the post said. It said the same about retail, including standalone stores and shopping centers.
Merced, Tuolumne and other counties
Indoor dining and retail also have returned in Merced, Mariposa, Tuolumne and Calaveras counties. They and other counties still can’t have high-risk sectors such as hair salons or fitness centers.
Grocery stores and other “essential” businesses have been exempt from the state order from the start.
San Joaquin County reported 33 deaths to coronavirus and 733 positive cases as of Thursday. Stanislaus was at 28 deaths and 611 cases.
San Joaquin had a relatively large number of deaths earlier in the pandemic, while Stanislaus reported none for several weeks. They are now roughly similar on a per-capita basis.
This story was originally published May 22, 2020 at 8:21 AM.
