California Goes Back To Lockdowns: Indoor Restaurants, Bars, Movie Theaters

California closes indoor restaurants, movie theaters and all bars statewide

Noah Higgins-Dunn

• California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday ordered all counties in the state to close all bars and the indoor operations of businesses including restaurants, movie theaters and museums, as Covid-19 cases continue to climb.
• The businesses will be allowed to operate outdoors, if possible, except for bars, he said. 
• In addition to the statewide order, Newsom said he would also close indoor operations for fitness centers, worship services, personal care services, malls, offices, hair salons and barbershops for 30 counties on California’s monitoring list, which represent 80% of the state’s population.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered all bars and all dine-in restaurants, movie theaters, museums and other indoor businesses across the state to close Monday as Covid-19 cases continue to climb.

The affected businesses include all operations at bars and the indoor operations at restaurants, wineries and tasting rooms, movie theaters, family entertainment centers, zoos, museums and cardrooms. All except for bars will be allowed to operate outdoors, if possible, he said. 

The order comes after Newsom previously ordered these businesses to close in counties on the state’s “monitoring list.” The new order, which will now apply across the state, is effective immediately, Newsom said.

In addition to the statewide order, Newsom also ordered the closure of indoor operations for fitness centers, worship services, personal care services, malls, offices, hair salons and barbershops for all counties that have been on California’s monitoring list for three or more consecutive days, which represent 80% of the state’s population. There are now 30 counties on the list, including Los Angeles, San Diego and Orange counties, Newsom said. 

The Golden State governor’s order on Monday marks one of the largest rollbacks any state has issued since reopening their economies. Newsom reminded residents to limit their interactions with people outside their households and encouraged them to meet outside if they do meet.

Earlier on Monday, two of California’s largest school districts, Los Angeles Unified and San Diego Unified, issued a joint statement announcing that they will begin the fall school year online. 

In the statement, the school districts said much of the research surrounding the coronavirus and children is still unknown and many of the guidelines for reopening are “vague and contradictory.”

“One fact is clear: those countries that have managed to safely reopen schools have done so with declining infection rates and on-demand testing available. California has neither,” according to the statement.