Our 165th Year
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F R I DAY, J U N E 12 , 2 0 2 0
Green light given for more reopenings Order OKs hotels, gyms, museums; 46 new COVID-19 cases reported By MITCHELL WHITE NEWS-PRESS ASSOCIATE EDITOR
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KENNETH SONG/NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS
Outdoor dining areas have expanded onto State Street in downtown Santa Barbara.
‘A wonderful atmosphere’
new Health Officer Order will go into effect today, allowing several additional sectors to reopen their doors with certain modifications. The order, issued by Santa Barbara County Public Health Officer Dr. Henning Ansorg, will go into effect at 8 a.m. today and will remain in place until June 30, unless modified. With certain social distancing protocols and completion of the attestation process, the following sectors will be allowed to reopen: family entertainment centers; hotels, lodging and short-term rentals for tourism or individual travel; childcare programs and providers; zoos, aquariums and museums; campgrounds, RVs and outdoor recreation; cardrooms, satellite wagering facilities and racetracks; music, film and TV production; professional sports; gyms and fitness centers; restaurants, wineries and bars; day camps; schools and schoolbased programs; and higher education.
The sectors will be allowed to reopen while adhering to the governor and health officer protocols and after completing the county’s attestation process. To find out more information, visit www.recoverysbc.org. The Santa Barbara Zoo is currently in the process of looking at possible reopening dates and will examine how to reopen in a safe manner, Rich Block, zoo CEO, told the NewsPress. The zoo posted to Twitter Thursday, saying it was waiting on final approval from the county Public Health Department. “As soon as we get the green light, we’ll announce our reopening date,” the zoo said in a tweet. Metropolitan Theatres has announced on its website that, subject to change, it plans June 26 reopenings of both Metro 4 on State Street and Camino Real in Goleta. The county Health Department announced 46 new cases of COVID-19 Thursday, bringing the total confirmed cases in the county to 1,910. Of the cases announced Thursday, Please see reopenings on A2
Outdoor dining expands to Santa Barbara’s main corridor, many hope it becomes permanent By JOSH GREGA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
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estaurants in the 500 block of State Street have started using the arterial’s new promenade setup to its full extent by sectioning off seating areas going into the street, an arrangement that has proven to be a hit with clientele and one that many hope is here to stay. Late last month, the Santa Barbara City Council voted to give foodservice businesses permission to erect temporary outdoor dining areas in an effort to help local restaurants increase their business as the number of customers they could serve was impacted by COVID-19 social distancing requirements. Blocks of State Street from Haley Street to Sola Street were closed to traffic and turned into a promenade. Establishments on the last block like Institution Ale Co., Sandbar, Pascucci, and The Cruisery have already set up outdoor dining areas, which receive many customers during the lunch rush and in the evening. The Cruisery Owner Aron Ashland told the News-Press that his new outdoor seating area has been very popular with customers, so much so that it’s the section of the restaurant that gets crowded first since everyone wants a spot there. “It’s the first part of our restaurant that gets busy. It definitely seems to be the most, I guess, sought after. People always want to sit outside, so really it’s been great,” he said. Institution Ale Manager Brian McGlynn had similar remarks regarding the brewery’s outdoor seating area, calling it “where people want to be.” “It seems like everyone loves it. People come in and they’re asking especially for these tables,” he said. To comply with social distancing requirements, Institution, The Cruisery, and other State Street restaurants that have created outdoor seating areas have
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their tables six feet apart to accommodate social distancing. This also goes for their indoor seating. Not only is the new State Street popular, but so is the possibility of the promenade setup becoming permanent. While sitting down to a glass of beer at Institution, Santa Barbara resident Devon MacLeod told the News-Press that she’d like it if people could still walk in the middle of the street after the pandemic has subsided, as “it’s way better than having car traffic.” As she and a friend were having lunch at Pascucci, Santa Barbara resident Judy Ricker said the outdoor dining and promenade setup is a shot in the arm for State Street and has given it a revival that it has needed for a long time. “I think it creates a wonderful atmosphere. State Street has
been in the doldrums for years and even without the pandemic we need something like this to reenergize our economic engine,” she said. She added that keeping the promenade in place after the pandemic is the right way to go. In her opinion, State Street doesn’t need to be a “drive street.” She stated, “No one I know drives on State Street now. Why not make it something interesting and vital?” Keeping the promenade after the health crisis was also a popular idea among the restaurant owners and managers who spoke to the News-Press. Mr. McGlynn revealed that many Institution customers come up to him and inquire whether the new State Street will remain once all COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. Having heard about the
idea of turning State Street into a pedestrian-only corridor long before COVID-19 hit, he himself hopes that the current makeshift promenade is a “test run” for a more permanent version in the future. Since the promenade was set up and restaurants were allowed to create outdoor dining areas, Mr. Ashland has noticed a “drastically different” number of people out and about on State Street, as well as a big increase in business. If it is here to stay, he predicts that State Street will enter a new era of prosperity that has eluded it for a long time. “Finally, State Street is where people are going to want to come again and it’s been a long time, it’s been like 10 or 15 years since that was the case,” he said. email: jgrega@newspress.com
Courtesy of Jesse Natale | J North Productions
Students from the D’Arezzo Center for Creative Education were featured in the music video for the single by Tay da Prince, “Love One Another.”
John Legend’s nephew works with local students D’Arezzo Center students featured in music video starring Tay da Prince By: GRAYCE MCCORMICK NEWS-PRESS CORRESPONDENT
Patrons enjoying the outdoor dining at The Sandbar and Holdren’s on lower State Street.
The music video for a single by Tay da Prince, the nephew of Grammy-award winning artist John Legend, features some young, local faces. Students at the Santa Barbarabased D’Arezzo Center for Creative Education were asked to participate in the music video for “Love One Another,” in an effort to raise money for nonprofits Feeding America and the Love One Another Foundation. The single, which also features John Legend himself, made its debut on May 19, in the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Joseph D’Arezzo Natale, the founder and director of the D’Arezzo Center, said his
organization partners with the Santa Barbara Alliance for Community Transformation, which raises funds for the homeless, victims of abuse, human trafficking and youth advocacy. The center’s cause and Tay’s cause went hand in hand. “We wanted to be a light in the midst of so much challenge in our world right now,” Mr. Natale said. “We want to be advocates of change, so this is our way. Our students take what they’ve learned, and they express it through artistic expression. This is just who we are.” Around 20 students, varying from ages 5 to 15, were featured in the video. Although it was created Please see video on A7
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Comics................. A6 Classified.............. A7 Life.................... A 3-4
Wednesday’s SUPER LOTTO: 3-11-20-25-46 Meganumber: 21
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Obituaries............. A8 Soduku................. A5 Weather................ A8
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