SACRAMENTO, CA – The State of California has released requirements that need to be met by theme parks prior to them opening for business after being closed down for months due to the pandemic.
Now, the group that represents the theme parks is considering a lawsuit against the state because of how requirements are so strict, they are afraid it will adversely affect business.
California’s largest theme parks call new reopening guidelines arbitrary https://t.co/0eEFgOjup0
— The Sacramento Bee (@sacbee_news) October 22, 2020
Dr. Mark Ghaly, the California Health and Human Services Secretary, stated that the theme parks in the state will be split up in two different categories. The two different categories have different requirements that have to be met in order to reopen in the state.
Gov. Newsom: ‘No hurry’ to reopen @Disneyland and other California theme parks. The DICK-TATOR Newsom is killing California and Jobs. People are struggling to survive and the virus survival rate is 99.98% for most. Disney needs to sue, We need it open, will wear masks/gloves
— Dave (@Dave87522359) October 11, 2020
Parks that are small that only can accommodate less than 15,000 people are allowed to reopen their outdoor rides and attractions at 25% capacity when the area they are located in has less than 4 cases of COVID positive patients and the positivity rate is under 5%.
Larger parks, like Universal Studios and Disneyland, who can accommodate more than 15,000 people, have much stricter guidelines before they can reopen. The area that the parks are in much only be showing 1 active COVID case per 100,000 residents. The positivity rate must also be below 2%.
With restrictions that strict, it is unlikely that the theme parks would be able to reopen any time in the near future. Something of which concerns the California Attractions and Parks Association. The Executive Director of the group, Erin Guerrero, said:
“All options are open at this point. Our number 1 goal is to be allowed to reopen responsibly. Obviously, we’d love to keep the conversation going [with the state] and come up with a reasonable timeline…But at this point, any option is viable.”
What Guerrero is referring to is the possibility of seeking a remedy through the court system that would allow the parks to reopen, in her opinion, with far more reasonable conditions than the state is laying out.
Karen Irwin, the President and Chief Operating Officer at Universal Studios, like Guerrero, is concerned with restrictions the way they are, few employees will be able to return to work anytime soon.
Irwin points out that the ingress and egress of the parks are controlled, alluding that they could easily enforce the number of people in the park at one time and ensure that everyone is socially distanced and wearing face masks. In addition, she pointed out that the majority of the park is outside. She said:
“Our parks are controlled. They’re primarily outdoor businesses that have proven we can operate responsibly…[California] ignores the fact that parks already operating elsewhere see predominantly local attendance.
“We all know – and a lot of data supports – that international visitation to California is unfortunately not going to return to 2019 levels for many years to come. We’re also seeing that outer US attendance is vastly reduced. And on top of that, Southern California parks generally relied on local visitors even pre-COVID.”
The President of Disneyland Resort, Ken Potrock, also feels the restrictions place by the state are too stringent and needs to rely on other factors other than the number of positive cases and the positivity rate. He said:
“Those are not the only health metrics that need to be taken into account. This pandemic is a much broader health crisis when unemployment becomes a factor in what we’re trying to do.”
Potrock’s concern about unemployment is a valid one. After all, Disneyland alone was forced to layoff 28,000 workers in California as well as Florida by the end of September. Those employees may have solely depended on their employment in order to pay rent, food, etc.
Potrock’s concern for the overall health of his company and his employees is important, and he does not want to sue, but does agree that it is a possibility if the state and the theme parks cannot come to a reasonable conclusion. He said:
“Trying to come up with a collaborative solution is the end goal for all of us – one that’s fair and balanced and takes into account all the facts…That’s the ultimate opportunity and one that we all gladly and willingly would roll up our sleeves and work with the administration to do. But it has to be a much greater back-and-forth dialogue.”
Report: California Governor Newsom closes beaches and restaurants, but his winery remains open
July 4, 2020
CALIFORNIA – California Governor Gavin Newsom is being widely criticized for implementing further shutdowns Wednesday.
In 19 counties, Newsom ordered restaurants, bars, winery tasting rooms, zoos, movie theaters and museums to be closed, from July 3rd through the 5th.
Let’s not forget that the governor ordered beaches across the state to be closed in southern California this holiday weekend.
The problem that’s bigger than the shutdowns themselves is that Newsom conveniently left Napa Valley out of the shutdowns, which houses his very own Plumpjack Winery.
Newsom is keeping HIS wineries open over the weekend & they don’t serve food. Hypocrite! pic.twitter.com/U7VlkZVkeB
— Joanne_Lopez_Dow🇺🇸 (@dow_lopez) July 2, 2020
To the closures, Newsom stated:
“I cannot say it enough; I said it last week, I said it yesterday and I’ll say it again. We’ve got Fourth of July weekend coming up. One of the areas of biggest concern relates to the spread of COVID-19 in this state remains family gatherings. Not just bars. Not just being out in the streets where people are protesting and the like.”
“It’s specifically family gatherings. Where family members or rather households — immediate and extended family members — begin to mix and take down their guard. They may walk into that barbecue with masks on; then they put the cooler down and the mask comes off, they have a glass of water, and all of a sudden nieces and nephews start congregating.”
To be fair, Napa Valley has had only 343 cases. This is largely minimal compared with the 2,200 cases Los Angeles County reported on Thursday alone.
In Los Angeles County, 1,900 are hospitalized with the virus, 28% of those in intensive care.
Plumpjack posted some advertisement posts on Instagram, which have since been taken down. Here are screenshots of the posts informing people on mask wear.
The Daily Mail reported:
“His wealth is derived from holdings in the hospitality industry, including wineries, vineyards, bars, restaurants, cafes, and hotels in the San Francisco Bay Area, Lake Tahoe, and Palm Springs.
“Newsom and his wife reported more than $1.2million in income during his final year as the state’s lieutenant governor, the majority of it from outside business interests.
“Newsom’s 2018 return showed nearly $394,000 in wages, of which about $151,000 was his state salary.”
On Thursday, Newsom encouraged California residents to turn to their “better angels” in wearing masks, and also discouraged “traditional” family gatherings for the Independence Day holiday.
the governor has mandated wearing mask and shutting down inside dinning at restaurants. at the same time Newsome’s winery in Napa will be open and is completly booked for this weekend. WACK AF! pic.twitter.com/tHFCD2v1FI
— young crypto wolf (@youngcryptowolf) July 3, 2020
Newsom is being questioned on his aggressiveness, or lack thereof some say, in enforcing the mask mandate he has put in place. He mentioned that he has formed teams of “state regulators” to focus on businesses that don’t enforce the rules within their walls, including regarding masks and other social distancing and sanitary requirements.
On Thursday, the state sent letters to businesses, about 350,000 of them, warning of fines and criminal prosecution for failure to implement the mask order.
Newsome you might want to talk to this guy. He thinks he knows more than you about mask wearing. https://t.co/eVCDD6bQVs
— CWolk (@hellowolkenfeld) July 1, 2020
Newsom also said:
“We’re not going into everybody’s backyard and enforcing. We’re just encouraging people to be safe, to be thoughtful about themselves and others.”
Just in case Californians aren’t aware of the closures and mandates by now, Newsom announced a “public awareness campaign” to be featured on billboards, TV and radio ads and social media posts to remind them of the virus and the importance of social distancing and wearing masks.
Many authorities in California aren’t willing to enforce the mask orders, as Law Enforcement Today has reported in the past. Here’s that story again.
While governors such as Gavin Newsom let terror groups like Antifa and Black Lives Matter run roughshod, unabated across their states, they continue to implement measures that some call draconian as coronavirus cases have rebounded as states open up.
On Friday, California broke a record for the number of cases in a single day, according to KTLA.
That same day, Newsom issued a new mandate that is ordering state residents to wear masks inside public spaces and in situations where six feet of social distance cannot be maintained.
However, at least five sheriff’s departments are fighting back, saying that they will not enforce the order, while citing the minor nature of the offense or lack of sufficient resources.
The sheriff’s offices which announced their refusal to enforce the order are those in Orange, Sacramento, Tulare, Fresno, and Calaveras counties.
Sacramento not enforcing it.
Los Angeles not enforcing it, at least not in my neighborhood.
Orange County not enforcing it.
😂😂😂#RecallGavin2020#RecallGavinNewsomhttps://t.co/3KKHyzthPF
— Liberty Lisa (@brandt_kat) June 21, 2020
In Orange County, sheriff Don Barnes said:
“It is each person’s responsibility to wear a face covering and follow other recommended safeguards in order to stop the spread of COVID-19; it is not law enforcement’s responsibility to enforce it.”
In Sacramento, the sheriff’s office suggested that people should be “exercising safe practices,” including the wearing of masks, but said it was “inappropriate” to criminally enforce the governor’s order, or go after people or businesses who refuse to do so, according to the Sacramento Bee.
“Due to the minor nature of the offense, the potential for negative outcomes during enforcement encounters, and anticipating the various ways in which the order may be violated, it would be inappropriate for deputies to criminally enforce the governor’s mandate,” Sheriff Scott Jones said in a statement.
God bless Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones. It’s about time we had someone in authority stand up for the Constitution and what is right. Again, God bless him. @sacsheriff https://t.co/2RqpvSNHXN
— Ranger Roy, #KAG, #CULT 45, ✝️🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@ragtown48) June 20, 2020
Rather Jones said, deputies will be working in more of “an educational capacity,” which the office has maintained as an enforcement stance over the executive orders for months with regard to social distancing protocols, despite health orders locally and statewide coming down in an effort to slow the spread of coronavirus.
Jones said that sheriff’s office employees will comply with the order “to the extent feasible.”
As of Friday, Sacramento County had recorded 1,976 lab-positive cases of COVID-19, with 67 deaths. More than 475 cases and 22 deaths have taken place in unincorporated county areas of the county where Sacramento sheriff’s deputies routinely patrol.
Other Sacramento area agencies have also said that they will not enforce the order, including the Sacramento Police department, which said in a released statement that their “primary focus would be education,” spokesman Karl Chan said.
Placer County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Angela Musallam said that office will not enforce Newsom’s order either.
“We do hope [people] will take the rule to heart, but we have no interest in arresting or penalizing people who aren’t wearing masks in any way,” she said.
The office will be directing residents who have concerns about either businesses or groups that are out of compliance to Newsom’s office.
The Placerville Police Department notified residents in a Facebook post on Thursday just after Newsom’s order that they were requested not to contact the police department to report violations of the mask order and to “use common sense and keep yourself safe.”
“This is not a police issue,” the department wrote.
Likewise, the Roseville Police Department said that they too would not enforce Newsom’s order.
“No law enforcement agency wants to be responsible for shutting down a gathering or citing people who are out of compliance” the department said in a Facebook post Thursday.
“If the need arises, we’ll work with our partners in Placer County Health and Human Services and City of Roseville Code Enforcement to ensure everyone understands the requirements and is working toward compliance.”
Yolo County officials said they would only act against non-compliant businesses, and not individuals. The county has had its own mask requirement in place since the end of April. They noted that their priority is education to get people to comply with the mask directive.
With the Yolo County Health Officer Order in place requiring the use of face masks while out in public, the CDC has instructions on how to make your own face mask at home! For more information, please visit https://t.co/hJ3tzyABQ0
— Yolobus (@YolobusYCTD) April 28, 2020
“The regular person on the street is likely not going to be given a citation,” said county spokeswoman Jenny Tan. “Businesses must make a good faith effort. When someone comes into a business or restaurant or gym, they have to say, ‘Hey please wear a face covering.’”
Aside from law enforcement officials, some cities and towns are also balking at enforcing the order. For example, the mayor of Nevada City intimated that Newsom’s order was not legitimate.
The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, along with Sacramento police, Placer County deputies, Roseville police and Placerville police, will not be enforcing Newsom’s mask order.Northern California mayor lashes out at Newsom’s mask order: ‘There is no law’ https://t.co/gCjGB2UwSK
— WeezyLeaks (@WeezyLeaks420) June 21, 2020
Saturday morning, Mayor Reinette Senum said that Newsom’s orders could not be enforced by law and no action can legally be taken against offenders.
“As you go about your day today, KNOW there is NO LAW that Orders you to Wear a Mask. Our Governor does NOT have that unilateral power to make such orders,” Senum said.
“Ask your local Police chief or officers. They will not, and cannot, cite ANYBODY for not wearing a mask because the law does not exist.”
Senum continued, “When you come across Newsom’s ‘orders’ online, you will see it’s linked to a page that does not lead you to his Executive Order, BUT to the California Department of Public Health GUIDELINES!,” SHE SAID.
“Again, NOBODY can be forced to wear a mask outside, in a business, or as an employee or customer.”
It appears that not only have people had enough of subjective enforcement, but so have police and sheriff’s departments.
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