In CA: Counties can open at their own pace, but not so fast, L.A.
A California reopening is just around the corner now that Gov. Gavin Newsom has eased a few restrictions and given some power to counties. Meanwhile, tribal casinos are opening their doors and yes, there's a line. Finally, find out how the pandemic made it easier to score a plate of tacos.
It's Wendy Leung writing from drizzly Ventura County and filling in for Arlene Martinez.
Today is the first day for undocumented immigrants to sign up for a new state relief program. But when the phone lines opened, the system crashed due to the barrage of calls.
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Let's jump right in.
Did someone say sports in June?
In a state with 58 counties, a one-size-fits-all public health order shouldn't apply. That's what some county leaders have been pushing, and Gov. Newsom responded today. The governor unveiled more guidelines that offered a glimmer of hope to those in need of a haircut. Counties can soon allow salons to reopen and sports ... well, sports can begin as early as June. But without fans.
The relaxed guidelines allow most of the state’s 58 counties to begin allowing dining in restaurants and other services.
“Bottom line is: People can go at their own pace, and we are empowering our local health directors and county officials that understand their local communities and conditions,” Newsom said.
Not all counties will be able to go at their own pace, however. Los Angeles County, the state’s most populous and with the most coronavirus cases, will likely wait awhile longer before haircuts are allowed.
What's a casino without slot machines?
It's not what Gov. Gavin Newsom wants, but casinos are revving to open across the Golden State. Just get ready to have your temperature checked and don't expect to find your favorite slot machine, or any slot machines, waiting for you.
Closed for the past two months, casinos are planning to open their doors with precautionary measures. This morning, eager gamblers in the San Diego area waited in a morning line for the Viejas Casino & Resort to open. It's one of the state's largest tribal casinos. There were temperature checks at the door and every other slot machine was off.
In Southern California, the Cahuilla Casino Hotel near Anza and the Soboba Casino near San Jacinto are looking to open next week. Pechanga Resort Casino near Temecula hopes to open June 1.
Tribal casinos in Northern California are ready to go back to business but good luck finding a slot machine. All of them will be removed. Harrah’s Northern California in Amador County, Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Sacramento and Cache Creek Casino Resort in Brooks all plan to open in the coming weeks.
Tribes are sovereign nations, but Newsom nevertheless urged the casinos to reconsider opening.
"This virus does not recognize jurisdictional boundaries, and it is in the best interest of public health to move toward reopening in concert," according to Newsom in a letter.
What else is open, what's not
Joshua Tree National Park, for one, is open. Family campsites are open but group campsites are not. Read the regulations before you go. And where would you stay if you were to visit Joshua Tree? Maybe at a short-term rental. They're open in San Bernardino County.
Retail with curbside pick-up is opening back up but what does that mean for bridal shops, which rely on in-person measurements and countless fittings? “A wedding dress is the dress of your life. I’m not going to have someone buy it virtually. It’s against my principles," said one retailer.
Olvera Street in Los Angeles, which has been selling Mexican crafts and folk art for nearly a century, is still closed. Now merchants are asking City Council for help. The 70-plus merchants want to be exempt from paying the April and May rent.
The CSU system has announced that the fall semester will begin virtually. But that doesn't mean football is closed. Three schools, including San Diego State, are making fall plans with players returning to campus as early as July 7. “We’re going to plan that we are going to play our football opener as scheduled,” said the SDSU athletic director.
Churches in defiance
Gov. Newsom's Monday address indicated that clearer guidelines for reopening churches would come in a few weeks.
But in Oceanside and Chula Vista, two churches defied orders and held in-person services. Meanwhile in Butte County, a local pastor said it is essential to be together in fellowship after defying health orders against in-person services. During a Mother's Day service, an asymptomatic congregant potentially exposed 180 people to the coronavirus. In Mendocino and Lake counties, three positive cases were discovered and linked to a live-streamed Mother's Day service.
We're following these headlines
A criminal investigation has begun into a downtown Los Angeles explosion that left 12 firefighters injured. The blaze melted helmets and burned a firetruck. The cause of the blast has not been determined but according to an initial investigation, it took place in a warehouse containing supplies for butane hash oil.
Ride-share service Uber laid off 3,000 employees. That's on top of 3,700 positions already eliminated less than two weeks ago. The total cuts will save the company a cool $1 billion. Restaurant delivery service Uber Eats has seen a surge, but it's not enough to make up for the losses in rides.
PG&E may have found its way out of bankruptcy. According to the utility company, Northern California wildfire victims have approved a $13.5 billion payout plan. Some 70,000 victims were eligible to vote on a plan to compensate any uninsured losses from a series of wildfires blamed on PG&E’s faulty equipment. That includes the 2017 wine country fires and the 2018 Camp Fire, which killed 85 people.
Let's end with some carne asada
Sure, restaurants are still open for drive-through and carry-out but that's not necessarily conducive to truckers and other essential workers hauling goods across the state. I mean, how does one navigate a big rig through a Taco Bell?
To offer some dining options, a Caltrans program is turning to food trucks and allowing them to open at interstate rest areas. That means vendors like Tacos El Javi can set up shop in an area where commercial activity was previously prohibited.
When Selene Martinez hands over a plate of carne asada tacos studded with onions and cilantro, she gets plenty of gratitude.
"We get a lot of ‘I love you's,' because they’re so happy to have a hot meal,” she said.
Tacos. They do have a tendency to elicit declarations of love.
In California is a roundup of news from across Paste BN Network newsrooms. Also contributing: Sacramento Bee, Los Angeles Daily News, Associated Press, Los Angeles Times, New York Times and San Francisco Chronicle.