Today is the day the governor said he will release the official guidance for how we will move to the next stage of the gradual reopening of businesses and easing of other public health restrictions. Here at the city we’re on the edges of our seats, ready to quickly get this information out to our businesses and help support them in getting prepared.
Changes will be very modest at first
In reality, these first steps are expected to be pretty modest and will likely not seem like a huge change. People won’t be allowed inside stores, it’ll just be curbside pickup, which some businesses are already doing. Restaurant dining is not likely to be included just yet, nor will offices. But, it’s a start, and that’s a good thing!
Continue to stay at home
The ability to ease restrictions will depend a lot on the individual actions taken by each of us. As a reminder, the stay at home order is still in effect. In fact, according to the governor’s four stage reopening plan, lifting the stay at home order doesn’t happen fully until stage four. So, you can go out to your local parks and trails. If you live walking or biking distance from the beach, you can go there now too. But otherwise we need you to still stay home except for essentials like food, medicine and exercise close to home.
Remember the basics
The health precautions we have stressed from the beginning remain just as important today:
•When you go out, bring a face covering. Use it if you can’t maintain a 6-foot distance from people you don’t live with.
•No gathering of any kind with people you don’t live with, even if they’re family, even if you’re covering your faces.
•If you’re 65 or older or otherwise at a greater risk to COVID-19, avoid going out at all, if possible.
•Wash your hands with soap and water for a minimum of 20 seconds throughout the day and every time to leave your home and return.
•Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth with unwashed hands.
•Avoiding close contact with people who are sick.
•Stay home if you’re sick.
Case numbers expected to increase
At yesterday’s news conference, the county’s top public health official stressed that case numbers will increase in the coming weeks. That’s because until a vaccine is available, COVID-19 will continue to spread.
The reason for the strict stay at home orders was to allow time to get other management strategies in place. The main two are building health care capacity to treat those requiring hospitalization and intensive care and creating a comprehensive system to test and trace contacts of those infected. The past two months have allowed the state and county to do this.
Latest data
Yesterday the county reported 4,319 total cases, 159 more than the day before. Carlsbad’s case numbers are the same at 57. Sadly, the county reported eight more deaths yesterday, bringing the new total to 158. Here is a link to all of the charts and graphs released yesterday.
On Monday I took out the links to the case information I used to share here and instead provided a link to this new page on our website with all of data. But, some of you said you missed the links, so they’re back, including a new data portal announced yesterday by the state. It tracks COVID-19 cases statewide and by county, gender, age and ethnicity. The portal also outlines statewide hospitalizations and testing efforts.
City cases
Confirmed cases by city
Map showing case numbers in the county
Cases by ZIP code
Chart showing Carlsbad case history
San Diego cases
San Diego County case portal
Interactive dashboard
California cases
NEW California data portal
Interactive dashboard
COVID-19 cases and nursing homes
U.S. and global cases
Global and national case numbers
Golf carts now allowed
We’ve gotten a lot of comments about the restrictions on golf carts. Again, these aren’t necessarily the city’s rules, just something we are enforcing from the county. First, they weren’t allowed except for people with disabilities. Then, they were also allowed for people 55 and older. Now, they are allowed for everyone, except only people in the same household may ride together. Hopefully this will make it easier to get out on the links, something I know many of our residents enjoy and have missed.
Workers compensation and property taxes
The governor issued two new executive orders yesterday. One provides workers compensation benefits to cover more employees who contract COVID-19. The other waives penalties for property taxes paid after April 10 for taxpayers who demonstrate they have experienced financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This will apply to residential properties and small businesses. The new order also extends the deadline for certain businesses to file Business Personal Property Statements from today to May 31, 2020, to avoid penalties. Here’s the news release and links to the executive orders.
New city business loan program
Yesterday I let you know about two new small business loan programs approved by the City Council Tuesday. As a reminder, we need a little time to work with the third-party organization that will administer this program for us and to get the application process set up. If you have questions about the program, please email us at business@carlsbadca.gov. If your question is about how to apply, please sit tight. We’ll let you know as soon as it’s ready, likely in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, if you have a local business or know someone who does, please check out the resources on our website – everything from other loans and assistance, resources for employees, current rules, free webinars and more.
Update to the update on COVID-19 response
Yesterday I also shared part of an update provided to the City Council Tuesday about the cost of the city’s response. One eagle-eyed reader questioned the staffing cost. To clarify, the “spending” on staffing dedicated to the COVID-19 response effort is not necessarily additional money being spent. We are tracking the time spent by city staff and the dollar value of that time so we can be eligible for any potential state and federal reimbursement. We’ve incurred some overtime costs for staff, but primarily redeployed staff to work on COVID-19 related tasks. Sorry if this caused any confusion. We take our stewardship role of city resources very seriously and are working hard to make sure they’re being utilized in the most efficient and effective manner possible.
Carlsbad’s life sciences industry a key player in COVID-19
Many people think of Carlsbad as a residential community with a strong tourism industry. That is true. A lot of people don’t realize that we are also home to many other significant industries, including life sciences. We have a separate website dedicated to economic development that has lots of interesting information about our corporate sectors, including a blog that’s been highlighting how our local companies are involved in COVID-19 related testing, therapies and vaccines.
Here’s the latest entry about Carlsbad’s GenMark Diagnostics, which is working on testing, and Argonaut Manufacturing Services, which has provided manufacturing support for testing companies as well as services needed to support clinical trials for COVID-19 vaccines.
Most of these companies are tucked away from the beaten path in the business parks surrounding Palomar Airport. Long ago the city had to zone these areas for businesses because homes aren’t allowed close to the airport. All these years later, this zoning, plus an aggressive and targeted economic development strategy has made Carlsbad a hub for major corporate headquarters and innovative businesses.
I’d like to end by thanking you for your continued adherence to the stay at home orders and other health precautions in place. Carlsbad’s case numbers remain relatively flat, and this is a direct reflection of your efforts. As restrictions begin to ease, please keep this up. It’s the quickest path to a further return to normalcy and still the very best thing we can all do to #Care4Carlsbad.
Scott Chadwick
City Manager
