Santa Barbara Zoo to reopen
History of Isla Vista
Carmen Lodise publishes second edition of his book - A3
Our 165th Year
Beginning Saturday, you can visit the animals - A8
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Back to business Businesses get green light to reopen services after lockdown
State moves to age-based vaccination system By GRAYCE MCCORMICK NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
California is moving to an age-based system to vaccinate residents, as opposed to its previous job-based system. Government Operations Agency Secretary Yolanda Richardson announced in a press conference Tuesday that she is working with third party administrators to build a statewide vaccine administration network to increase efficiency and visibility in the vaccine rollout. Education workers, food and agriculture workers and first responders, along with residents ages 65 and older, are still next in line for vaccinations. But, after those groups receive their vaccine doses, the state is transitioning to an age-based eligibility system with a focus on equity. State officials hope to reach low-income neighborhoods and providers with this new system. Details on the system were not provided by state officials, so it’s unclear what this age-based system entails. However, state and local officials have said that weighing job-based risk has slowed down the rollout, and “it is easier and faster to verify one’s age than one’s occupation,” according to a San Francisco Chronicle report. The third-party administrator or administrators will allocate vaccine doses directly to public health systems, pharmacies, public hospitals, community health clinics and pop up and
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Barber Jennifer Castor of Fairview Barbers in Goleta finishes styling Bill Shields, a loyal customer of the business since 1972.
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For the first time since November, the phone was ringing off the hook at Fairview Barbers in Goleta. Owner Tim Carey and Barber Jennifer Castro spent most of the morning shifting between cutting hair and answering the phone, and within two hours of reopening, Mr. Carey said the barber shop’s appointment book was full. “I could’ve used a secretary today,” Mr. Carey laughed. After weeks of stay-at-home orders, personal care services were allowed to reopen Tuesday, following Gov. Gavin Newsom’s announcement Monday that the lockdown would be lifted. The end of the lockdown means businesses can return to operations in the purple tier of restrictions. Under the purple tier regulations, personal care services are allowed to open at limited capacity and restaurants can seat customers outdoors. “(Our customers) are extremely glad to see us open,” Mr. Carey said. “They’ve just been waiting and anticipating Please see reopening on A8
A return to purple tier restrictions allowed restaurants to reopen outdoor dining Tuesday. Eureka! restaurant began seating customers outside Tuesday afternoon.
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The Santa Barbara Unified School District will be ready to reopen elementary schools once the county reaches the required five-day case rate of 25 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents. The current state guidance does not require a waiver to reopen, but a safety plan is required. Over the past months, the district has studied safety measures and ventilation on its school sites. “We do have to submit a plan to the state, which is being submitted tonight, in fact, after this meeting. So, we are ready,” Dr. Frann Wageneck, assistant superintendent, said. “When we get to that point where we’re at 25 cases per 100,000 people or lower, we will open our elementary schools in the hybrid plan. We’re ready to do it today.” Susan Klein-Rothschild, Santa Barbara County Public Health Department school liaison, also expressed confidence in the district’s plans. “All the planning that I’ve heard over the last couple months; I’ve heard of all those reviews and tours of schools and ventilation and steps with staff with students. I’ve talked to many of your nurses about steps taken when there’s a positive case,” she said. “I feel like I’ve
heard the district take a lot of proactive steps to be ready. “So when you hit that number, there’s nothing else that’s a barrier for you.” Currently, the county’s case rate is 49.5 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents — a strong decline from the case rate at the last school board meeting. “I can honestly say this is the first time, and really a couple months, that we’re headed in the right direction. We need to get to a case rate of 25 to be able to open for in-person learning, and that’s the goal for everyone,” Ms. KleinRothschild said. “We want students and staff back at school safely.” Dr. John Becchio, assistant superintendent of human resources, had questions regarding the state’s guidance, which requires weekly COVID-19 testing of students and staff. While the district believes the state funding covers the cost of testing kits, he wondered about the time and staffing required to pull off weekly tests. A total of 90 COVID-19 cases have been detected in small cohorts on campuses. Of those, 20 are students, and 70 are staff members. Eight cases were transmitted at school. Only one student was infected on campus. “We don’t expect to see high net transmission happening on Please see sbusd on A8
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SB Unified ready to open when case rate falls By ANNELISE HANSHAW
By MADISON HIRNEISEN
mobile sites, “with an immediate focus on allocating to those who are vaccinating quickly and safely to accelerate our progress,” according to Ms. Richardson. Included in efforts to smooth out the vaccination rollout, a new tool was created to help mitigate the confusion of California residents who don’t know when their turn is to receive the vaccine. Now, residents can visit myturn.ca.gov, enter their information and learn if it’s their turn to receive a dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. If it’s not their turn, users can sign up to receive a notification when it will be, and, in the coming weeks, will be able to schedule an appointment to get vaccinated, all at the same website. During the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, Public Health Director Dr. Van DoReynoso clarified a few questions, including rules surrounding bars and youth sports and communitysponsored programs. She confirmed that wineries can operate and serve drinks outdoors without having to serve food, but bars, breweries and distilleries must serve food with drinks outdoors. She added that low-impact, outdoor sports and competition are allowed for sports such as cross country, dance, track and field, tennis, swimming and other no-contact sports.
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