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Almost a week after moving to Safer Home Orange, Boulder County on Thursday announced new restrictions to try to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the community.
These changes, which take effect on Saturday, include additional restrictions on restaurant operations and indoor events.
According to state data, new cases of COVID-19 among residents of Boulder County over the past two weeks are 556.9 per 100,000. Stay-at-home measurement starts at 350 cases per 100,000 , so Boulder County is well in the “red zone” in terms of incidence. The five-day moving average of daily cases among residents of Boulder County is 182.2 cases per day, according to a press release from Boulder County Public Health.
Cases are rising so rapidly that Boulder County Executive Director of Public Health Jeff Zayach said the county no longer had the capacity to track contact tracing and case investigations.
“We are … well beyond the ability to contact Trace, investigating these cases at a statewide level, not just in Boulder County,” he said in a briefing Thursday morning. . “In order to be able to change that, he’s going to take a statewide approach and that will have to be as soon as possible if we’re really going to get a feel for that.”
Zayach said Boulder County is encouraging the state to take “active leadership in this area.” People travel freely between counties, so it’s best to take a regional and national approach to tackling the disease, he said.
Still, Boulder County is hoping the new restrictions will have an impact. The new public health order goes into effect on Saturday and will remain in effect until December 14, unless the county chooses to extend it.
Under the new order, personal gatherings in private or in public continue to be limited to 10 people from no more than two households. This includes gatherings held outdoors.
Boulder County’s new restrictions add additional restrictions for restaurants. While Safer at Home Level Orange limits restaurant capacity to 25% or 50 people, whichever is less, the county’s new restrictions affect the number of households that can congregate. Indoor meals are limited to one household per table and outdoor meals are limited to 10 people from two households per table.
For the local business community, the new restrictions are another blow to an already difficult year.
As the Events Coordinator at the Chautauqua Dining Room, Heather Harmon has seen her job shift from entertainment to policing. During the rare events that Chautauqua has hosted, Harmon said she was often responsible for making sure guests adhere to security protocols.
It has been difficult, but at this point many of the changes seem like second nature.
“For us, it’s more simply a new way of life. We’ve kind of adapted to that, ”she said.
As for the new changes, Harmon said time will tell how much the new dining restrictions will affect Chautauqua. Deputy CEO Amanda Perkins agreed, stressing the importance of making sure everyone is on the same page when it comes to security protocols and capacity requirements.
“The current situation is precarious and difficult,” she said. “We are all very committed to making sure our customers and employees are as safe as possible.”
For Boulder Chamber President John Tayer, the new restaurant restrictions mean it’s time for the Chamber to double its support measures.
“There is no doubt that this creates additional hurdles for our beloved restaurants,” Tayer said. “While we understand the need to respond to the public health crisis, we will be working twice as hard to support our businesses with a variety of initiatives that help lower costs and attract support from our community.”
As part of this, Tayer referred to the city’s new Restaurant SOS program, which until December 30 pays restaurant food delivery charges when customers use Nosh Boulder, a new food delivery app. .
In addition to affecting restaurants, the new restrictions limit indoor events to 25% of capacity with a maximum of 25 people in total, a reduction from Level Orange’s 50-person limit, and limit venues to host one indoor event per site, even if there are separate rooms. This does not include personal social gatherings indoors.
“Indoor events are indoor activities such as receptions, concerts, indoor markets, indoor malls, non-critical auctions, theaters, trade shows or other indoor venues that were not covered. in other sections of the state order and are intended for businesses where events are their primary function, ”Boulder County public health spokesperson Chana Gousset said in an email.
No spectators are permitted to participate in adult sporting events, high school games, professional league games, or University of Colorado Boulder football games.
Additionally, Boulder County continues to encourage all businesses to allow employees to work from home whenever possible.
Despite the new restrictions, several questions in Thursday’s briefing indicated that some community members believe more should be done to protect public health. One person asked why Boulder City Council was reluctant to act. Board member Mary Young responded that there are inherent challenges associated with balancing public health and protecting Boulder’s economy.
“It’s not that we resisted. It’s that we’re trying to find a balance between fighting the disease and the pandemic and the impact of economic closures on the community, ”Young said.
The new mitigation plan will be submitted to the State. However, if those restrictions fail to reduce the spread, Zayach said a home order is likely.
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