SLO County is moving into orange tier. Here’s everything that can reopen or expand
On Wednesday, San Luis Obispo County makes the jump to the orange tier of the state’s coronavirus reopening plan.
That’s good news for restaurants, retail stores and other businesses, which will once again be able to increase their indoor capacity. Bars that don’t serve food and non-essential offices can reopen for the first time since March 2020.
The move means that the entire Central Coast is now in the orange tier of COVID-19 restrictions under the state’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy.
San Luis Obispo County was the final county in the region to make the transition to that tier, following Monterey and Santa Barbara counties.
Why is SLO County in orange tier?
San Luis Obispo County was officially eligible to enter the less-restrictive tier on Tuesday thanks to an adjustment to metrics that means the county has met orange tier requirements for two consecutive weeks.
As of Tuesday, the county had an adjusted 6.2 new cases per day per 100,000 people, up slightly from 6.0 the previous week. The unadjusted case rate was 7.9 cases per day.
It had a positivity rate of 2%, down from 2.4% the previous week, and a positivity rate for people who live in the 12 census tracts in San Luis Obispo County ranked in the lowest quarter of California’s Healthy Places Index of 2.7%.
The adjusted case rate reported is slightly higher than the 5.9% metric required to enter the orange tier, but the county appealed the state to review data discrepancies and include a portion of Cal Poly tests in the overall testing volume.
The state concluded Tuesday that, with that information, San Luis Obispo County qualifies to move into the less restrictive orange tier.
According to state guidelines, counties under the orange tier are considered to have a “moderate” rate of spread of the virus. Under the previous red tier, coronavirus spread was considered “substantial.”
“We are grateful to see things moving in the right direction,” San Luis Obispo County Public Health Officer Dr. Penny Borenstein said in a news release Tuesday. “We cannot lose sight of the end goal. To fully restore health to our community, we must remain vigilant: get vaccinated against COVID-19, maintain personal safety measures, and get tested if you have symptoms so we can beat this thing.”
Does this mean working from home is over?
One of the biggest changes of San Luis Obispo County’s move to the orange tier is the reopening of non-essential offices.
This means many people who have been working from home for more than a year could once again return to in-person workplaces.
These businesses are required to still allow and even encourage remote work if possible, so it’s up to employers to decide when to reopen their offices.
Will bars reopen?
Though many local bars have reopened already because of an allowance for establishments that serve food, the orange tier allows bars that do not serve food to once again reopen.
These bars must operate entirely outdoors, with some modifications.
Can I go to a winery tasting room again?
Wineries and breweries, which have been allowed mostly only outdoor operations under previous tiers, can now reopen inside tasting rooms at 25% capacity, or 100 people, whichever is fewer.
Can I swim at an indoor pool?
Indoor pools at gyms and fitness centers are allowed to reopen again, with gyms upping their indoor capacity to 25%.
Will there be more people allowed inside other businesses?
Under the orange tier, many businesses that have already re-opened can bring more customers inside.
Museums, zoos, aquariums, places of worship, movie theaters and restaurants can all operate inside at 50% capacity under the orange tier.
Retail businesses, meanwhile, can reopen fully at 100% capacity, though social distancing and face mask regulations are still in effect.
What’s next for SLO County?
If San Luis Obispo County’s case rate and testing positivity rate continues to improve, it could move to the yellow tier of coronavirus restrictions after staying in the orange tier for three weeks.
A county must remain in a tier for at least three weeks before progressing to the next phase, according to state guidelines. However, it can slide back into the more restrictive tier in less time.
In order to move down to the yellow tier, in which COVID-19 spread is considered “minimal,” the county would need to have a case rate below two new cases per 100,000 people and a testing positivity rate below 2% for two consecutive weeks.
It would also need a healthy equity positivity rating of less than 2.2%.
This story was originally published April 27, 2021 at 3:03 PM.
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