San Francisco Begins to Reopen After State’s Lengthy Stay-at-Home Order

Mayor London Breed and Director of Health Dr. Grant Colfax on January 25 announced that San Francisco will resume some businesses and activities beginning January 28 after the state announced it would lift mandatory regional restrictions.

By the time you likely read this piece—publishing on the date of the limited reopening—the following activities will have resumed in San Francisco:

• Personal Services: Indoor and outdoor personal services establishments, including hair and nail salons, barbers, tattoo, piercing, and massage services may reopen, but facial coverings are required to be worn at all times. Services that would necessitate the removal of facial coverings are not allowed at this point.
• Outdoor Dining: Outdoor dining may resume. It is limited to up to 6 people total from up to two households at a table. Per State requirements, barriers between tables can no longer serve as an alternative to distancing tables 6 feet or more. Live entertainment is allowed except for singing or brass or wind instruments.
• Outdoor Museums and Zoos: Outdoor operations for museums and zoos may resume, though zoos are capped at 50% capacity not including personnel. Concessions are allowed under the guidance of retail or outdoor dining according to the type of concessions.
• Outdoor Family Entertainment Centers: Family entertainment such as skate parks, batting cages, miniature golf, kart racing, and laser tag or paintball may resume outdoor operations. Roller and ice skating rinks may operate at 25% capacity. Concessions are allowed under the guidance of retail or outdoor dining according to the type of concessions.
• Open Air Boats and Busses: Open air boats and busses may operate outdoor operations of up to 12 passengers or physically distanced groups of 12, if social distancing can be maintained between groups. Concessions are allowed under the guidance of retail or outdoor dining according to the type of concessions.
• Small Gatherings: Members of up to 3 households with a maximum of 12 people total may gather outdoors if social distance can be maintained and no food or drink is being consumed. If food or drink is being consumed, only members from two households of up to 6 people total are allowed. 
• Indoor Fitness: 1:1 personal training is allowed to resume indoors with no more than 3 people, including the customer, the trainer, and a support staff.
• Indoor Funerals: Indoor funerals may take place with up to 12 people.

“Today marks an important turning point that I hope we can continue to build upon,” Mayor Breed said. “San Francisco pre-emptively adopted the Stay-at-Home Order in an attempt to bend the curve so that we could protect our residents, control the surge, and move forward again as quickly as possible. We see now the sacrifices that our residents and businesses made are paying off, and I want to thank them on behalf of our city. We are moving the vaccines as quickly as possible, but there is still more virus in our community than there ever has been, and we need to proceed cautiously and remain diligent. That’s how we will move forward together.”

Dr. Colfax said, “Thanks to the hard work of everyone in San Francisco, we have been able to slow down this surge of COVID-19 cases and with our continued perseverance, we can prevent future surges and continue to safely reopen more activities. To do that, we must continue all of the preventive measures that we all know well, even as we roll out the vaccine. Staying vigilant will be critical to our long-term success.”

In addition to the resumption of some activities, the following may expand to certain degrees their operating capacity: grocery stores, retail, hotels and lodging, outdoor fitness, youth sports, outdoor recreation, golf and tennis, and outdoor religious and political gatherings.  

For more information: https://sf.gov/topics/reopening

Published on January 28, 2021