This town says no to tough virus rules, then yes
John Rogers
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2020 George Rose
Patrons at the popular Paula s Pancake House on Hwy 246 enjoy new outside seating arrangements brought about by COVID-19 on Oct. 10, 2020, in Solvang, California. It was almost two weeks ago that the popular California tourist town of Solvang made headlines when it said it wouldn t enforce Gov. Gavin Newsom s tough new stay-at-home orders. But that was a week before a new City Council took over and told everyone to obey the rules to save lives. (George Rose/Santa Ynez Valley Star via AP)
(AP) – The little California town of Solvang would normally be jammed with tourists now, strolling a main street bedecked with 100 brightly decorated Christmas trees or pouring into Danish-themed shops and restaurants, some with rooftop windmills, in search of tasty pastries and bric-a-brac like wooden shoes and puppets.
The little California town of Solvang would normally be jammed with tourists now, strolling a main street bedecked with 100 brightly decorated Christmas trees or pouring into Danish-themed shops and restaurants, some with rooftop windmills, in search of tasty pastries and bric-a-brac like wooden shoes and puppets.
Instead, “People are calling from all over, saying, ‘What the hell is going on?’ ” City Councilman Mark Infanti said earlier this week after the community of about 5,000 announced it would not enforce the latest stay-at-home order Gov. Gavin Newsom put into effect Dec. 6.
Newsom’s order closed many businesses, forbids restaurants from offering anything other than takeout and delivery, and limits retail stores to 20% capacity, a level devastating for Solvang’s small storefronts that at peak times before the pandemic overflowed with shoppers.
Record-breaking COVID-19 numbers prompt pleas for community members to follow safety guidelines
and last updated 2020-12-15 23:41:26-05
With record-breaking numbers of COVID-19 cases being reported in Santa Barbara County, health officials are pleading with people to stop gathering outside their households.
To continue those efforts, the City of Santa Maria has decided to put out signs that read wear your mask and stay at home.â City officials say right now more than ever it s important to continue to reach out to the community that accounts for a large percentage of these new COVID-19 cases. We believe that this is important. We ve seen the numbers starting to climb back up. We are over 5,200 cases confirmed in Santa Maria, said Mark van de Kamp, Public Information Officer for the City of Santa Maria.