Post-Covid Summer: Camps, Outdoor Events, Swim Lessons, By Jondi

Post-Covid Summer: Camps, Outdoor Events, Swim Lessons

By Jondi Gumz

With new COVID-19 cases in the single digits and 194,000 vaccinations, Santa Cruz County expects a huge increase in demand April 15, when any Californian 16 or older is eligible for vaccine, and could potentially move April 27 into the least restrictive Yellow Tier, which allows gyms, saunas, dance and yoga studios, wineries, breweries and bowling alleys to operate at 50 percent capacity.

Current capacity for those businesses is capped at 25 percent; live-audience events can be staged outdoors at 33 percent capacity. On April 6, Gov. Newsom announced the state has administered 4 million of doses of vaccine, a key milestone, and that if current trends continue, the state will fully reopen June 15, allowing conventions to resume, with maximum attendance of 5,000.

“We’re really quite pleased,” Santa Cruz County Deputy Health Officer Dr. David Ghilarducci said Wednesday. “We have a low of 3.4 new COVID cases per day on a per 100,000 basis and our positivity rate is down to 1 percent, which is quite remarkable.”

The single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine is on pause after 6.8 million doses – to investigate after six women under age 50 had serious blood clots and one died.

“It’s going to take some digging to understand whether the vaccine is an increased risk,” Ghilarducci said. “Catching COVID itself can cause blood clots. We’ve lost people, sadly.”

The pause is not expected to affect California, where Johnson & Johnson supplied only 4 percent of the state’s vaccines, or Santa Cruz County.

“It hasn’t impacted our clinics,” said Mimi Hall, Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency director. “We’re just substituting other vaccines.” Given current restrictions, Cabrillo College has announced a virtual graduation ceremony 4 p.m. May 21, requiring students to RSVP by April 26.

On March 26, the state announced guidelines for graduation ceremonies, and the Pajaro Valley Unified School District is planning in-person ceremonies.

Aptos High school staff has been asking for student and family input.

The Mariners have been playing football in a shortened season; track and field is under way, so is basketball.

Events to Return

Cabrillo Stage in Aptos plans to stage five musical productions outdoors in June and July, including “Circus: Knives, Blood & Water,” new show created by Capitola playwright Joe Ortiz.

The Scotts Valley Chamber of Commerce plans to restart the Art & Wine Festival Aug. 21-22 with Cops ‘N Rodders Saturday and Bring Your Dog Day Sunday, and Watsonville Municipal Airport plans to host “Fire in the Sky,” an open house with remote control aircraft demos and fireworks on Sept. 4.

Nothing in the state’s guidance would prevent a Fourth of July parade, according to Santa Cruz county spokesman Jason Hoppin, but no announcements have been made in Aptos, Scotts Valley, Boulder Creek or Watsonville, which traditionally host parades.

The challenge is that Caltrans and typically the county have required a 90-day notice to apply for a permit to close a road for the parade, Hallie Greene, Boulder Creek Recreation and Park District manager, said.

Members of the Boulder Creek Business Association, which puts on the parade, are strapped financially because of the state’s capacity limits, some at 25 percent.

“Financially, that’s not viable,” Greene

said.

The Scotts Valley City Council will discuss the parade, which closes Scotts Valley Drive but doesn’t require Caltrans approval, at its 6 p.m. April 21 meeting on Zoom. See www.scottsvalley.org.

Summer Camps

Summer camps are restarting, such as Camp Kayetz at Temple Beth El in Aptos; capacity is limited to 50 percent.

The popular Junior Guards and Little Guards, offered in three-week sessions by Santa Cruz County, opened phone registration April 3. The city of Santa Cruz will open online registration for both programs May 1, with time slots for residents and non-residents.

Jim Booth’s Swim School will open first in Watsonville, then at Harvey West Park in Santa Cruz.

Summer camp at the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter, with one-week segments in June and July, has already sold out.

Starting June 1, the state will allow overnight sleepaway camps.

On April 1, Santa Cruz County Health Officer Dr. Gail Newel took a ride on the Giant Dipper rollercoaster at the newly reopened Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk — wearing her mask, of course.

State guidelines allow amusement parks to reopen rides for California visitors at 25 percent capacity. The Yellow Tier allows 35 percent capacity.

Tight Supplies

At Wednesday’s press conference, Hall, the county’s health services chief, urged people to be patient on April 15, when everyone 16-and-older is eligible to get a vaccine appointment through www. MyTurn.ca.gov.

Federally qualified health care centers such as Salud Para La Gente and Santa Cruz Community Health are not using MyTurn, so to get an appointment there, go to santacruzhealth.org, click on vaccines and follow the directions.

Another source, supported by the federal Centers for Disease Control, is www. vaccinefinder.org.

Hall said no-shows are a problem locally, asking people who make more than one appointment to cancel the one not being used to give others who are waiting a chance for vaccine.

It’s not clear how easy that is to do.

Hall, who has experience as a “secret shopper,” said she tried to register on MyTurn to evaluate how it’s working.

“It’s problematic,” she said, explaining that she entered various ZIP codes and got a reply that no appointments are available, try San Benito County, even though she knew as the agency director that appointments were in fact available.

The upside is the state has corralled most health providers onto a single platform, making it easier to track California’s vaccination progress.

“COVID-19 Update” page 10

Santa Cruz County Jobs February 2021 (Count taken 12th of each month)

Change from Sector February 2021 a year ago Government 18,900 Down 3,700 Leisure & Hospitality 7,800 Down 6,400 Pvt. Ed. & Health 16,800 Down 1,500 Manufacturing 6,900 Unchanged Other Services 4,400 Down 1,000 Trade/Transportation/ Utilities 16,200 Down 400 Prof. & Biz. Services 10,500 Down 400 Information 500 Down 200 Construction 4,400 Down 200 Financial 3,200 Down 100 Nonfarm 89,600 Down 13,900 Farm 5,600 Up 1,100

Total 95,200 Down 12,800 Labor Force 130,400 Down 7% Employment* 119,400 Down 9% Unemployment 10,900 Up 23%

*Includes commuting to jobs outside county

Sources: California Employment Development Department