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Acting on a recommendation from the Council Economic Development and Technology (EDTECH) committee, the City Council Thursday agreed to allow a small range of businesses to re-open Friday. The vote was a consensus decision, as the Special Meeting item was not agendized as an action item.
As explained by City Manager Steve Mermell, “In accordance with state rules, the city will allow curbside retail for a limited category of retailers, specifically bookstores, clothing stores, florists, music shops, sporting goods and toy stores.”
Friday morning, a city official said the current list of businesses which may reopen now includes:
- Bookstores
- Jewelry stores
- Toy stores
- Clothing stores
- Shoe stores
- Home and furnishing stores
- Sporting goods stores
- Antique stores
- Music stores
- Florists
During Thursday night’s meeting, Mermell told the council that Governor Newson had “laid out a set of criteria to allow a limited amount of businesses to open, … and we have met that criteria.”
The council also agreed to allow the re-opening of the Brookside Golf Course. On Monday, city staff will report to the City Council on plans to allow the Rose Bowl Loop, local trails, and the disc golf course, to also reopen.
“What we are dealing with across this country,” Mermell added, “ is a delicate balance between how much economic activity we are willing to have, balanced against what is optimal from a health perspective.”
Mermell added that he thought local health officials would agree that “anything that we do that increases public contact is liable to result in more (virus) transmissions.”
The reopenings are occurring at the same time that the number of cases and deaths in Pasadena from COVID-19 continue to rise.
Asked by Councilmember John Kennedy if she could assure the City Council that the re-opening of local businesses and the Rose Bowl was “safe,” Pasadena Public Health Director Ying-Ying Goh, said, “It’s not really a matter of ‘safe,’ it’s a matter of the lowest risk.”
Goh acknowledged the rise in cases and said, “I’m really disappointed because we aren’t seeing a decrease in the number of cases in the county to the degree that we would like.”
“For example,” she continued, “I would like to see 14 days with no increases in the number of cases, and that’s not what we’re seeing. In Pasadena, we are seeing an increase in cases every day, but it is more flat. It’s been pretty steady for about a week or so.”
Goh added that the criteria for reopening is “not really being met tonight,” but that the state criteria that the city is using, shows that Pasadena’s health care system does have the capacity to handle a rise in cases so far.
“If we can’t,” said Goh, “then, we’ll close up again.”
Goh said that the reopening of stores, with curbside pickups and various protections such as masks and gloves, was “probably the lowest risk” the city could safely assume.
Councilmember Steve Madison noted that neighboring cities such as Glendale and Burbank have opened trails and similar recreational facilities, and worried that Pasadena was not “being a leader” among local communities.
Vice Mayor Tyron Hampton also told the Council that people are returning to the Rose Bowl loop and that “We won’t be able to keep them away forever.”
Hampton also said that in visiting other cities in the region, he saw a lot of public activity in recreational areas, including “thousands of people” in Newport Beach last night to watch the bioluminescent waves.
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