While individual counties can still decide how to proceed, this afternoon California's chief health advisor, Dr. Mark Ghaly, announced that a number of the state's businesses and education centers can reopen as early as next Friday, June 12.
Professional sports teams can begin practicing and playing again (without live audiences), while schools, bars, gyms and campgrounds can also resume with modification next week. The reopening also includes clearance on film and television production, as well as zoos and museums.
UPDATE (6/8): California has also released guidelines that would allow movie theaters to reopen. As part of its guidance for family entertainment centers, the state says movie theaters could reopen at 25% capacity or a maximum of 100 attendees, whichever is lower; reservations would be encouraged and households would need to be seated at least six feet away from each other.
Next Friday's reopening date for schools and camps applies to all of California, but when it comes to other sectors, procedure will align more closely with the state's early-reopening variances, which allowed the relaunch of the likes of dine-in restaurants and retail (which Los Angeles resumed last Friday). As with the variances, the decision to reopen next week will be left to county public health officers and other county leaders, provided their respective counties meet the state-mandated health benchmarks.
So far, Los Angeles County hasn't released word on whether it will reopen or even seek to reopen the permitted sectors next week.
Guidances have been released for most of the designated business, save schools—though the California Department of Public Health released an interim guidance for schools this afternoon. Many of these operations fall under Gov. Gavin Newsom's phase three of reopening; the fourth phase is a full reopening.
The statewide announcement comes on a day when L.A. County reported its total cases now surpass 61,000, though the infection rate currently remains more or less stable. Per the Associated Press, nearly every county in California meets the state's benchmarks for reopening next week.
"Just because some businesses are opening doesn't mean your risk for COVID-19 is gone," Director of the California Department of Public Health Dr. Sonia Angell shared in a public statement. "We all need to continue to keep physical distancing, wash our hands and wear face coverings in public. As we continue to release guidance on how different sections can reopen with modifications, it is important to remember guidance doesn't mean 'go.' Your local health officer will make the final decision about which sectors will open, guided by data specific to your community."
You can find California's guidances for reopening by sector, below:
- Campgrounds, RV Parks, and Outdoor Recreation
- Fitness Facilities
- Restaurants, Bars and Wineries
- Museums, Galleries, Zoos and Aquariums
- Cardrooms, Satellite Wagering Facilities and Racetracks
- Hotels, Lodging and Short-Term Rentals
- Family Entertainment Centers (which does not include the likes of theme parks, water parks or roller rinks)
This story originally reported that the family-entertainment guidelines did not include provisions for movie theaters, when in fact they now do. This story has been updated to reflect this.
Most popular on Time Out
–How to support Black Lives Matter and other groups protesting in Los Angeles
–You don't have to worry about street sweeping tickets in L.A. until July 6
–Your food orders donate to black causes at these L.A. pop-ups and restaurants
–Thousands of Angelenos marched peacefully across L.A. on Tuesday afternoon
–This spreadsheet details over 100 black-owned L.A. restaurants to support