California to start reopening outdoor concerts, sports and theme parks in April
In the latest move to ease coronavirus restrictions, California health officials on Friday announced changes that will allow outdoor ballparks, stadiums, and theme parks to open with reduced capacity, mandatory masking and other public health precautions in certain tiers starting April 1.
The change comes just a few days after Newsom administration officials unveiled a new plan to ensure vaccines reach the state’s most disadvantaged communities and speed up economic reopening. The plan targets 40% of the state’s vaccines doses to disadvantage neighborhoods.
Once 2 million people from those communities have been vaccinated, the state will make it easier for counties to move from the most restrictive purple tier into the less restrict red tier by increasing the number of daily new cases allowed for counties to move tiers.
In California, tiers are tied to which businesses can open and what kind of restrictions they must follow.
“With case rates and hospitalizations significantly lower, the arrival of three highly effective vaccines and targeted efforts aimed at vaccinating the most vulnerable communities, California can begin gradually and safely bringing back more activities, especially those that occur outdoors and where consistent masking is possible,” said Dr. Mark Ghaly, secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency.
Outdoor events will still be subject to restriction based on county tiers.
Outdoor sports and live performances with fans and attendees are eligible to begin on April 1. In the most restrictive purple tier, capacity will be limited to 100 people and attendance will be limited to regional visitors. Advanced reservations will be required, and no concessions or concourse sales will be allowed.
In the red tier, capacity will be limited to 20% and concession sales will be primarily in-seat. In the orange tier, capacity will be limited to 33%. In the yellow tier, the least-restrictive, capacity increases to 67%.
Regardless of tier, attendance at outdoor sports and live performances will be limited to in-state visitors.
Amusement parks, which are currently only allowed to open in the red or orange tier, will be able to reopen in the red tier beginning April 1. In the red tier, capacity will be limited to 15%. In the orange tier, it increases to 25%, and then 35% in the yellow tier. Attendance will also be limited to in-state visitors.
California’s largest amusement parks have pressed the Newsom administration to allow them to bring in more visitors for months and publicly weighed a lawsuit against the state last fall. On Friday, the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 324, whose members include some Disney parks employees, applauded the decision to ease restrictions.
“Our Disney cast members are heartened by this good news today that the Disney parks will be reopening in a month,” the labor group said in a statement. “They have been furloughed or out of a job for a year now and are excited to go back to work to provide Californians with a bit more magic in their lives.”
Erin Guerrero, executive director of California Attractions and Parks Association, also praised the Newsom administration for the decision. The group represents large California theme parks, like Disneyland and Universal Studios.
“Today’s announcement from the Newsom Administration is very encouraging news for California’s amusement parks,” Guerrero said. “Parks now have a framework to safely and responsibly reopen. We appreciate the administration’s willingness to work with the state’s theme on the finer details of the plan so parks can responsibly reopen soon, putting people safely back to work and reinvigorating local economies.”
Speaking to reporters, Ghaly said the state would consider targeting vaccines at workers in certain business sectors as they reopen.
“As tiers begin to include more workers in certain sectors, we absolutely believe that the support of employers to get their employees vaccinated is good for individuals they employ, good for the businesses that are operating and frankly, help us more quickly get to our goal of getting as many Californians vaccinated,” he said.
Of California’s 58 counties, 40 are currently in the purple tier, representing 87.1% of the state population. Sixteen counties, about 13% of the population, are in the red tier. Only two counties, Sierra and Alpine, are in the orange tier.
“Throughout the pandemic, California’s business community has been committed to protecting the health and safety of workers and customers – and that won’t change now,” said Dee Dee Myers, senior adviser to Newsom and director of the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. “We will continue to work together with our partners across all sectors of the economy, as we reopen safely, sustainably and equitably.”
President Joe Biden earlier this week said he expects the country to have enough vaccines for every American over 16 by the end of May. Gov. Gavin Newsom hinted that major league ballparks could be open to fans for every day this season. After a brutal spike in cases over the winter, California’s positivity rate this week dropped to 2.2%, the lowest its been in months.
“We will....keep our foot on the brake, not the gas, our eyes on the road, hands on the wheel and navigate based on data and science,” Ghaly said. “Future updates to the blueprint will be guided in exactly the same way.”
This story was originally published March 5, 2021 at 2:30 PM with the headline "California to start reopening outdoor concerts, sports and theme parks in April."