DMV Further Extends Expiring Drivers' Licenses Due to COVID-19 Pandemic Delays

The California Department of Motor Vehicles today is offering additional extensions to noncommercial driver licenses and permits so Californians can delay or avoid a DMV office visit during the COVID-19 pandemic. The DMV has alerted California law enforcement of the new extensions. Californians with a suspended license are not eligible.

Drivers age 70 and older with a noncommercial license that expires in June or July will receive a 120-day temporary extension. The DMV had previously announced a 120-day extension for licenses expiring in March, April and May, and the DMV is further extending licenses expiring in March to be valid through July 31, 2020. California law requires drivers age 70 and older to visit a DMV field office to renew their license but gives the DMV authority to issue extensions. No individual action is required as eligible drivers will receive a paper license extension in the mail.

Drivers age 69 and younger with a noncommercial license that expires between March and July will receive a temporary extension through July 31, 2020. In most cases, these drivers are eligible for an online renewal and should try to renew their license online. While the extension is automatic, drivers 69 and younger will not receive a new card or an extension in the mail. As an option, these drivers can request a free temporary paper extension online through DMV’s Virtual Field Office to document their extension, though one is not needed to drive. Californians who previously requested an extension through May 31, 2020, are eligible to submit a new request to document the new date.

Driver license permits that expire in July or August are extended six months or to a date 24 months from the date of application, whichever is earlier.

All commercial licenses, endorsements and learner’s permits that expire between March and June will remain valid through June 30, 2020, to align with federal guidance. Select DMV offices reopened to the public earlier this month to serve customers with appointments and process transactions that can only be accomplished at an office, including commercial driver license transactions. Commercial drivers also can now submit medical certificate updates for their license through the DMV’s Virtual Field Office, virtual.dmv.ca.gov.

www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/dmv/detail/pubs/newsrel/2020/2020_23

Hair Salons and Barbershops May Apply to Reopen Tomorrow in Ventura County

Via Pexels (Photo credit: Gratisography)

Governor Newsom announced today that hair salons and barbershops in most California counties can reopen as the state moves forward on the path to reopening. The County of Ventura was approved for a state variance last week allowing the County to move faster through California’s reopening phases

Hair salons and barbershops that reopen may only provide services that allow for both the stylist and customer to wear face coverings for the entirety of the service. This means that haircuts, weaves and extensions, braiding, lock and wig maintenance, hair relaxing treatments and color services can be provided.

Services like eyebrow waxing and threading, facials and eyelash services are still not allowed since they involve touching the customer’s face, according to the state’s guidance

vcemergency.com

Peebee & Jay's Now Open in Newbury Park

UPDATE: Peebee & Jay’s Newbury Park opened in August. Currently open 10:30am to 4pm Monday through Saturday.

Long-time CVG friend Dawn Viet pointed out that the sign "Peebee & Jay's" is up at the Thousand Oaks Marketplace (aka Walmart/Walgreen plaza) at 520 N. Ventu Park Road. Located directly to the right of Dong Ting Spring Chinese Cuisine and two doors from Jimmy John's on the right.

Peebee & Jay's, with locations in Carpinteria and Port Hueneme, offers an interesting array of sandwiches, soups and salads. Quite a delicious sounding array of sandwiches, such as "Chicken Dressed Up Like a Salad" (sliced chicken, avocado, bacon, balsamic rosemary spread, french fried onions, etc.) as well as PB&J sandwiches like "Smore Peebee Please" (pb, Nutella and marshmallow fluff). Stay tuned on timing.

www.peebeeandjaysonline.com

Lalo's Family Restaurant Opening in Camarillo

I've been told that Lalo's Family Restaurant will be opening its Camarillo location at 1901 Daily Drive on Memorial Day. Mexican cuisine served up at Lalo’s locations in Oxnard, Ventura and now Camarillo. This is the space formerly operated by Tony Roma's, Yamato, then Sushi Teri Teppan House, which closed in 2015. www.lalosfamilyrestaurant.com

The Corner Mexican Grill "Coming Soon" to Thousand Oaks (Now Open)

La Esquina Mexican Grill now open.

Looks like a new eatery is coming soon to 3297 Thousand Oaks Boulevard (formerly Just Coffee). La Esquina Mexican Grill (or The Corner Mexican Grill). They are hiring at Laesquinamexicangrill@hotmail.com. They appear to have two websites, laesquinamexicangrill.com and thecornermexicangrill.com although it appears they are migrating towards the latter

Santa Barbara County Public Health Announces Face Covering Requirement May 26 to June 30

The County Health Officer Dr. Henning Ansorg, M.D. has issued Health Officer Order No. 2020-10. This Order will be effective starting 5:00 p.m. May 26, 2020, continuing until 5:00 p.m. on June 30, 2020 or until it is extended, rescinded, superseded, or amended in writing by the County of Santa Barbara Health Officer

A significant portion of individuals with COVID-19 are asymptomatic and can transmit the virus to others through coughing, sneezing, or talking. Face coverings have the potential to slow the spread of the virus by limiting the spread of respiratory droplets.

The intent of this Order is to temporarily require the use of Face Coverings to slow the spread of COVID-19 to the maximum extent possible.

The new order stipulates the following:

This Order does not apply to infants or children under the age of 13.

Masks with one-way valves cannot be used to comply with this Order. These types of masks permit respiratory droplets to easily escape which places others at risk.

All individuals, unless an exception applies, must wear a face covering:

• When inside of or in line to enter any and all businesses.

• When using public transportation, a private car service, or a ride-sharing vehicle. Drivers must wear a face covering while driving or operating vehicles regardless of whether a member of the public is in the vehicle.

All businesses must require employees, contractors, owners, and volunteers to wear a face covering at the workplace and at off-site work locations.

Exceptions, guidelines and information relative to this order can be found in the full Health officer Order located at countyofsb.org/uploadedFiles/phd/PROGRAMS/Disease_Control/Corona/Health%20Officer%20Order%202020-10.pdf.

publichealthsbc.org/covid19/stay-well-at-home-order-3

Santa Barbara County Parks, Beaches and Trails Remain Open for Day Use as of May 22nd

Santa Barbara County parks, open spaces, beaches and trails remain open for day use. Practice social distancing and adhere to guidelines for spending time outside alone or with household members only. Look for the less busy parks and open spaces in your neighborhood and visit those when possible. If parking lots are full then the park is too busy and you can come back another time. Limit your visits to about one hour so that others can use the park as well. Avoid loitering in parking lots. Working together we can prevent the spread of Covid-19 while keeping our parks, open spaces and beaches open for all to use. Continued violation of social distancing and group gathering guidelines could lead to park closure.

DAY-USE PARKS: All day-use parks and restrooms are currently open. Cachuma Lake and Jalama Beach remain open for a limited number of day-use vehicles.

BEACHES: All County beaches and beach access points are open. Maintain social distancing guidelines; no group activities allowed; do not block high traffic areas such as access points, stairs, ramps and hard-packed sand; consider going further down the beach to find space; limit your time at the beach so others may enjoy; no loitering in parking lots.

PLAYGROUNDS: All playgrounds in County Day-Use Parks and Neighborhood Open Spaces are closed.

BASKETBALL AND VOLLEYBALL: Basketball and Volleyball courts in County Day-Use Parks and Neighborhood Open Spaces are closed.

TENNIS COURTS: Tennis courts in County Day-Use Parks and Neighborhood Open Spaces are open.

GROUP AREAS: Group areas in all parks are closed; group reservations are cancelled.

BBQ and PICNIC TABLES: All BBQ and picnic tables in County Day-Use Parks and Neighborhood Open Spaces are closed.

DOG PARKS: All dog parks in County Day-Use Parks and Neighborhood Open Spaces are closed.

CAMPING PARKS: Cachuma Lake and Jalama Beach will open to camping on June 1st. Camping will be reservations only, no walk-ins will be accepted. Jalama cabins will be closed until June 11 and all existing Jalama cabin reservations during those dates will contacted by the county’s call center to cancel or reschedule.

GOLETA PIER: The Goleta Pier Boat Launch is closed.

JUNIOR LIFEGUARD PROGRAM: Hendry's JR Lifeguard program is cancelled for the Summer 2020 season.

COUNTY TRAILS: County trails are open with noted exception of Nojoqui Falls Trail being closed. Please hike alone or in family groups only; maintain social distancing of 6 ft; warn other of yours presence as you pass; step aside to allow others to pass; use trails during off peak times; if trail head parking is full then the trail is too busy and you can come back another time; no loitering at trail head parking.

Agoura Hills/Calabasas Community Center to Temporarily Close Until January 2021

2023 UPDATE: Yes, the center has been closed now for 3 1/2 years, a bit longer than originally planned, but plans are now to reopen the facility in early 2024. The center is undergoing major roof repairs, fresh paint, new audio/visual equipment, new flooring in the gym and much more.

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The Board of Directors of the Agoura Hills/Calabasas Community Center Joint Powers Authority met on Thursday, May 21, 2020 at 6:30 pm to discuss the financial status of the Community Center and the potential for an extended temporary closure. After reviewing the Center’s major losses during the COVID-19 Pandemic and the liabilities that the Center will be responsible for in the next six months, the Board made the terribly hard decision to temporarily shut down operations as of June 1, 2020, with an anticipated re-opening in January 2021.

Regularly scheduled programs will not be held during the temporary closure; however, the Center is working on alternate solutions for all programs and will keep the participants and the public updated as these decisions are made. The JPA Board of Directors wants to make sure that the community is aware that this measure was not taken lightly and was approved with the hope of seeing the Center fully operational in the future. It has been a wonderful asset to the community over the past 20 years, and the Board is fighting to make sure that it will continue to be so despite the financial hardships it has undergone.

During the time that the Center doors are closed, the JPA Board of Directors, the Executive Director, and the two cities will work together to revitalize the Center with a plan that is sustainable and best serves the communities’ current and future needs. The JPA Board of Directors and staff want the community to be involved in this process and are looking for the community to share ideas, programs, and needs with the Board to help them make sure that the Center can remain a vital piece of the community. Please reach out to Brianne Anderson, Executive Director at brianne@ahccc.org to share comments regarding the Center in 2021 and beyond. Please make sure to follow our website and social media for meeting updates and additional opportunities to get involved in the process.

Refunds continue to be issued for any pending events, programs, memberships, camps, and security deposits. Memberships will continue to be placed on hold during this time and no charges will be made for anyone in our system.

For specific questions you may have regarding the temporary closure or if you would like to support the Agoura Hills/Calabasas Community Center during this time, please reach out to the Executive Director at brianne@ahccc.org. Community members may also visit the Center’s website at www.ahccc.org for meeting and status updates.

County of Ventura Approved for Accelerated Reopening: Dine In and In Store Shopping Will Be Permitted Starting May 21st

The County of Ventura is the first and largest Southern California County to receive approval from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to move forward on an accelerated Stage 2 path to reopening. With this approval, Ventura County restaurants can now offer dine-in options and all retail businesses with exterior facing entrances are permitted to have customers inside of their stores.

Given increased statewide and local capacity to respond to COVID-19, including stronger preparedness, continued stability in the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, as well as increased ability to provide personal protective equipment to workers in essential sectors, the State announced the new attestation opportunity for counties to move through Stage 2, opening additional sectors of their economy at their own pace. The modified State guidance was issued by the Governor on Monday, May 18.

Regular Stage 2 has included curbside retail, manufacturing and supply chain businesses. The Governor has allowed counties that apply and qualify for a variance to move further along into Stage 2 with seated dining. The County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to ratify the attestation on Tuesday, May 19 at the regularly scheduled Board meeting. It was submitted to the State on that same day. The State provided approval in less than 24 hours.

To qualify for the variance, counties must attest that hospitalization and test positivity rates are stable or declining; that they have a significant level of preparedness with testing, contact tracing, PPE and hospital surge; and that they have adequate plans related to county-wide containment.

Criteria also includes 1) the rate of positive Covid-19 patients hospitalized cannot be greater than 5% in the last 7 days. The County of Ventura is at -3.4% in the past 7 days. 2) Positive test results for the last 14 days can be no greater than 8% and our local number is 3.5%.

Restaurants and retail must register at www.vcreopens.com and follow the guidance. Learn more about the California Resilience roadmap for state reopening at covid19.ca.gov/roadmap.

The Public Health Officer will modify the Stay Well VC Order this evening. Dine in and in store shopping will be permitted effective Thursday, May 21, 2020.

COVID-19 Industry Guidance:

Shopping Malls, Destination Shopping Centers, Strip and Outlet Malls all with exterior facing entrances are permitted to open. covid19.ca.gov/pdf/guidance-shopping-centers.pdf

Dine-In Restaurants: covid19.ca.gov/pdf/guidance-dine-in-restaurants.pdf

Here’s a small sampling of some of the dine-in restaurant guidelines from the state public health officer:

• Provide disposable menus to guests and make menus available digitally to be viewed on a smartphone, if possible. If not possible, properly disinfect menus before and after customer use.

• Do not leave out after-meal mints, candies, snacks or toothpicks for customers. Offer them with the check or provide only on request.

• Reconfigure dining areas to allow for at least six feet of physical distancing for customers and employees.

• Bar areas shall remain closed.

• Face coverings strongly encouraged for all employees, but required for any employee who must be within six feet of customers (e.g. server, manager, busser).

• Guests should enter through doors that are propped open or automated, if possible. Hand sanitizer should be available for guests who must touch door handles.

• Visitors should bring and wear a face covering when not eating and drinking.

This guidance is for dine-in restaurants and brewpubs, breweries, bars, pubs and wineries that that provide sit-down meals.