Rose Bowl Among Sports Stadiums, Ballparks, Amusement Parks State Clears for April Reopening

Stadiums, ballparks and amusement parks will be permitted to reopen with limited capacity and social distancing protocols in effect beginning April 1 under new guidelines issued by the state Friday, but it remained unclear whether public health officials in Pasadena would allow the Rose Bowl to reopen in response to the newly revised guidelines.

The California Department of Public Health issued a revision to its “Blueprint for a Safer Economy”

California Secretary of Health and Human Services Dr. Mark Ghaly said declining infection rates, along with the introduction of COVID-19 vaccines, made the change possible.

“With case rates and hospitalizations significantly lower, the arrival of three highly effective vaccines and targeted efforts aimed at vaccinating the most vulnerable communities, California can begin gradually and safely bringing back more activities, especially those that occur outdoors and where consistent masking is possible,” he said. “Even with these changes, California retains some of the most robust public health protocols in the country.”

State guidelines now allow for stadiums, ballparks and outdoor performance venues to reopen with no more than 100 attendees while the region is in the state’s most restrictive, or Purple, tier under the state’s COVID-19 response framework. Only visitors from within the same region are allowed.

“Advanced reservations will be required, and no concession or concourse sales will be allowed,” according to a CDPH statement.

“In the Red tier, capacity will be limited to 20 percent. Concession sales will be primarily in-seat (no concourse sales),” the statement added. “In the Orange tier capacity will be limited to 33 percent and in the Yellow tier capacity will increase to 67 percent. Attendance will be limited to in-state visitors in the Red, Orange and Yellow tiers.

Amusement parks will be permitted to open only in regions that have achieved Red Tier status or better.

“Capacity will be limited to 15 percent in the Red tier,” according to a CDPH statement. “In the Orange tier, that limitation will increase to 25 percent, and then 35 percent in the Yellow tier. Attendance will be limited to in-state visitors.”

Both Pasadena city officials and Rose Bowl representatives said they were looking into the new state guidelines and what the changes might mean locally.

City officials learned of the change Friday afternoon, along with the rest of the public, city spokeswoman Lisa Derderian said.

“We typically do not get much (notice) when the state makes an announcement like this,” she said.

“It’s encouraging,” Derderian said of the policy change. “Our goal is to be able to open, but still in a safe environment, following all the covid protocol.”

She added that the city’s primary focus has been on distributing vaccinations and helping shepherd the region into the Red Tier.

Rose Bowl General Manager Darryl Dunn said the stadium, too, had just learned of the new guidelines and was examining options.

Meanwhile, public health officials in Pasadena reported 15 new COVID-19 infections and one new death on Friday.

The death was that of a member of the community at large, as opposed to a resident of a care facility, Derderian said. Information regarding the victim’s age and gender was not available.

The new figures raised Pasadena’s totals since the onset of the pandemic to 10,977 known COVID-19 infections and 319 fatalities.

Pasadena saw an average of 16.2 daily infections over the prior week, according to city data.

At Huntington Hospital, officials reported treating 36 COVID-19 patients on Friday, with eight of them being housed in intensive care units.

While recent trends have been encouraging, Derderian urged Pasadenans not to fall into complacency.

“If people get too comfortable and travel or gather in groups outside their household there is still the concern we can see another surge,” she said.

The growing proportion of the population that has received vaccinations seemed to be driving down new infections, Derderian added.

“Hundreds of restaurant and grocery workers were vaccinated this week and that will continue,” according to Derderian. “Teachers and daycare workers are also in this phase to prepare for school reopening.”

“We should be receiving the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in the next few weeks, so we’re very optimistic that’ll enable us to vaccinate more community and business representatives,” she said.

But for far too many families, the pandemic was far from over, Derderian said.

“Unfortunately, we are still seeing deaths almost daily from cases that in some cases go back several weeks,” she said.

Eligible Pasadenans were urged to fill out an inquiry form on the city’s website to be notified when vaccines are available at cityofpasadena.net/public-health/covid-19-vaccine. Information is also available on the state website myturn.ca.gov.