Conejo Creek Dog Park, Other Off-Leash Dog Parks and Pickleball Parks Have Reopened in the Conejo Valley

This was Conejo Creek Dog Park at 1350 E Avenida De Las Flores, Thousand Oaks on Saturday.

Today, CPRD announced that the Conejo Creek Dog Park is back open, along with off-leash dog areas at Estella, Kimber and Walnut Grove Parks. They were previously closed on April 2nd. Humans must practice appropriate (6 foof minimum) social distancing at the parks. Dogs may continue smelling and sniffing other doggies as appropriate. Pickleball courts at Conejo Valley parks have also reopened (though other facilities e.g. playgrounds, etc.) are still closed

These and other Ventura County area dog parks at THIS LINK.

Conejo Open Space Announces Limited Access to COSCA Space and Trails in the Conejo Valley Beginning on Wednesday, April 22nd

The Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency (COSCA) announced today that it will begin a phased and limited opening of trails in the Conejo Valley beginning this Wednesday, April 22nd.

COSCA trails will open for weekday walk-up entry Monday to Thursday between 6am and 6pm and Friday from 6am to 5pm.

Open space areas will be closed at 5pm on Fridays until 6am Monday, reflecting weekend closures.

All trailhead parking lots will remain closed. Visitors are asked to walk to a nearby trail and avoid driving to trails.

The weekday opening mirrors the policy implemented by the National Park Service.

The decision to begin limited opening is based on the Ventura County Health Officer’s Health Order that took effect on April 18th, extending the Stay at Home order to May 15th, but allowing physical activity outside the home for exercise. Note that the order recommends not gathering in groups larger than 5 people and that social distancing is mandatory in the open space. Visitors are also encouraged to wear cloth masks when on the trails (masks are not a replacement for social distancing).

This is a trial opening. Trails could be re-closed if safety protocols are not observed or health orders are changed.

conejo-openspace.org/assets/pr_weekday_trail_opening_20200420.pdf

City of Port Hueneme Announces "Soft Re-Opening" of Hueneme Beach on April 18th

The City of Port Hueneme closed Hueneme Beach to all activity on April 1st but has announced a “soft re-opening” after the Ventura County Public Health’s updated Stay at Home Order announced on April 18th.

The soft re-opening is contingent upon everyone visiting the beach adhering to the listed guidelines and restrictions. The city asks beachgoers to continue to wear masks while outside as people may continue to be asymptotic.

If beachgoers follow social distancing guidelines and these new beach restrictions, we will not need to reinstate another beach closure.

The city has asked visitors to use the beach to exercise and get fresh air but not as a place to hang out and socialize. Activities allowed on Hueneme Beach: Walking, running, exercise, surfing, biking, swimming, and other uses that require physical activity. None of these activities shall be done in groups.

The city is highly discouraging people from the following activities: Sunbathing, congregating, and sitting. In addition, items not allowed on the beach include blankets, chairs, coolers, umbrellas, tents and any item that promotes a stationary presence. The pier, picnic areas, restrooms, and playground equipment will continue to be closed.

There is no open street parking as ithis helps prevent people from simply congregating and hanging out in their vehicles. It continues to help expand our walkways for people walking in both directions and it creates and even bigger bicycle lane for those at the beach.

More detailed information and updates at porthuenemeemergency.org.

Updated Stay Well at Home Order Issued by Ventura County Health Officer Today, April 18th

A new order was issued by Ventura County Public Health today, effective at 11:59PM, superceding all previous orders. The detailed 19 page order is posted on the vcemergency.com website in a pdf at vcportal.ventura.org/CEO/VCNC/2020-04-18_Signed_15V8544-Final-Final_Master_Ord.pdf. The order is in effect until 11:59 pm on May 15th.

Here are some highlights:

1. All persons are ordered to stay at their homes. Homeless are exempt from this, but are strongly urged to obtain shelter.

2. We can leave our homes to engage in Essential Activities, to provide an Essential Government Function or Service or to operate or work at an Essential Business. And of course follow social distancing requirements when doing so.

3. Residents 75+ and 70+ with active or unstable comorbidity are ordered to stay home, except as necessary to seek medical care or nutrition or to perform essential work.

4. Non-Essential Travel is prohibited within the county. Travel into or out of the county is allowed as necessary.

5. Non-Essential businesses must close. There are allowed exceptions for home based businesses and “Limited Business Operations.” Limited Business Operations have facilities with no more than 10 employees or contractors on site during any 24 hour period, there is no physical interaction with the public, the public is not allowed in the workplace, social distancing is practiced and there is no retail operations (e.g. products have to be delivered, not picked up by the public).

6. “Essential Businesses” may only sell goods and services that justify their classification as essential. Grocery stores, for example, may only sell food, beverages, pet supplies and household products. They may not sell clothing, jewelry, sporting goods, furniture, etc. (The reason for this is that they would be at an unfair advantage vs stores forced to close as nonessential that sell such products.)

7. Only businesses whose primary business is selling food, beverages, pet supplies or household products (cleaning and personal care) are considered Essential Businesses. If less than a third of a business’s gross sales constituted essential products over the last six months, they are not considered an Essential Business.

8. Food service requirements continue to be 1) takeout or delivery only; 2) food must be consumed elsewhere; and 3) social distancing must be maintained.

9. Other Essential Businesses must have proper social distancing protocols in place.

10. A partial list of Non-Essential Businesses and facilities includes bars and nightclubs that don’t serve food, movie theaters, concert halls, bowling alleys, etc., gyms, fitness centers and community pools, campgrounds and RV parks (except RV parks considered primary residences), clothing, sporting goods, jewelry, fabric, toy and game, book, arts and crafts, gun, bait and tackle, furniture, home decor, party decoration and tobacco and vaping stores, pawn shops, pet grooming, salons and barber shops. Door to door solicitations are banned.

11. Public or private gatherings of six or more people are prohibited. Essential Travel and Essential Activities are not prohibited for a single household or living unit.

12. Essential Activities includes medical visits, getting supplies, food , etc., funeral and wedding services (no more than 10 allowed, in addition to the couple and the officiant), outside gatherings to observe or participate in live or virtual presentations of no more than 10 people as long as the gathering is outdoors, persons from the same household must be in a motor vehicle (I’m not making this stuff up) with no more than 5 people, vehicles are at least six feet apart, etc.

13. Essential Activities also allow for outdoor activity, provided social distancing is applied. Examples of such activities given include golfing, tennis, pickleball, walking, hiking, running, bicycling, pleasure driving and working around their places of residence, including gardening. More specific requirements for golf are given in the Order, such as “a distance of at least 30 feet shall be maintained between groups of golfers at all times.”

14. The list of Essential Businesses is pretty long. Here goes:

    1. Healthcare providers

    2. Grocery stores, farmers’ markets, produce stands, supermarkets, food banks, convenience stores, pet supply stores, etc.

    3. Agricultural production and processing.

    4. Businesses that provide food and shelter to those in need.

    5. Newspapers, TV, radio, other media.

    6. Gas stations, auto supply stores, auto repair.

    7. Banks, hardware stores, plumbers, electricians, exterminators, house cleaners, gardeners, etc.

    8. Mailing and shipping providers, including PO boxes.

    9. Education providers for the purpose of providing distance learning.

    10. Laundromats, dry cleaners, etc.

    11. Restaurant and other facilities that prepare and serve food for delivery, pick-up or drive-thru.

    12. Drive-thru car washes.

    13. Businesses that supply other Essential Businesses with support or supplies necessary to operate.

    14. Airlines, taxis, other transportation providers for purposes authorized in the Order.

    15. Home-based care providers and residential facilities.

    16. Professional services, such as legal or accounting services, when necessary to assist in compliance with legally mandated activities.

    17. Childcare facilities.

    18. Hotels, motels,. etc. for transient occupancy for visitors to the county.

    19. Bicycle stores, including the sales of bicycles, parts and supplies, andthe repair of bicycles. Bicycle rentals are not allowed.

    20. Real estate services, meeting requirements in the Order.

    21. In-person auto sales are now allowed, along with repair shops and auto part supply stores. Auto rentals are not allowed.

    22. Household appliance stores.

    23. Shoe repair shops. But no selling in person.

    24. Boat yards.

Virtual Collections on the Getty Center Website

We’re in the midst of a Stay at Home Order that has been extended to May 15th. When there’s not pandemic-driven Stay at Home order, you’ve always meant to check out the Getty Center in Los Angeles and the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades. Now you have all the time in the world, but the museums of course are closed.

Not to worry! There are plenty of things to virtually explore on their website at www.getty.edu!

Virtual Publications Library: More than 300 of books to read and download for free www.getty.edu/publications/virtuallibrary/index.html

Current exhibitions online www.getty.edu/whats-on

Online exhibitions www.getty.edu/art

Getty artwork collection: www.getty.edu/art/collection

Getty online special collections: www.getty.edu/research/special_collections/index.html

Open content - over 149,000 images at THIS LINK.

Santa Barbara Museum of Art Has at Home Activities Available on its Website

The Santa Barbara Museum of Art, like other venues in the area,, is closed during the Covid-19 Stay at Home order. But there are a variety of free activities to partake in on its website at www.sbma.net/events/sbmaathome. These activities include:

• Family Activities: At Home Activities for Kids, Studio Sunday Instructions and Videos and Art Making at Home Videos.

• Tours and Videos: Virtual Exhibition Tours and SBMA on YouTube

• SBMA Zoom Backgrounds to spice up your Zoom meetings.

• Explore permanent collections online - several thousand images are on display.

Learn more at www.sbma.net.

Los Angeles County Museum of Art Has an Array of Free Online Content to Explore

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is closed due to the COVID-19 emergency but offers on its website at www.lacma.org a variety of free content:

• Short films, exhibition walkthroughs and documentaries.

• Curated audio soundtracks, compositions and live recordings.

• Online courses, lectures and teaching resources.

• Articles, interviews and exhibition catalogs.

You can also browse through current exhibitions at www.lacma.org/art/exhibitions/current.

Ventura County Public Health Officer Issues New Stay Well at Home Order Today

Public Health Officer Issues New Stay Well At Home Order Protecting Seniors in Long-Term Care Facilities, Placing Further Limitations on Gatherings, Adding to the List of Essential Businesses and Enacting Social Distancing Protocols

Ventura County Public Health Officer Doctor Robert Levin has enhanced the Stay Well At Home order to save lives and stop the spread of COVID-19 in the County of Ventura. The Order supplements the Health Officer’s Orders dated March 17, 20 and 31, 2020. All prior Orders issued by the Health Officer remain in effect except where modified by the provisions of the latest Order.

The intent of the Order is to ensure that the maximum number of people stay in their place of residence to the maximum extent feasible to slow the spread of COVID-19 and mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the delivery of critical healthcare services to those in need.

The Order supplements and amends existing orders by, among other things: prohibiting all gatherings, no matter the size, outside of places of residences with limited exceptions, adding certain businesses to the list of essential businesses, requiring essential businesses to adopt and implement social distancing protocols, providing guidance for hospital holding units and long-term care facilities and declaring that violations of Health Officer Orders constitute a threat to public health.

Hospitals and Long-Term Care Facilities

Ventura County Public Health Department seeks to protect vulnerable populations from COVID-19. The most vulnerable population is the elderly. Seniors confined together in a Long-Term Care Facility are at particular risk. An outbreak there might result in numerous deaths. The Order advises Long-Term Care Facilities to relocate COVID-19 positive patients to COVID-19 Holding Units within hospitals.

All Gatherings Prohibited:

• All public and private gatherings of two or more persons occurring outside a single household or living unit are prohibited, except for the limited purposes of operating an essential business or to perform essential governmental functions or services.

• Members of single household or living unit are permitted to engage in essential travel or essential activities together.

• Gatherings of 10 or fewer persons are permitted at graveside funeral services.

• Staff of organizations or associations may gather for the sole purpose of preparing and facilitating live-stream or other virtual communications with their members and are limited to as few as possible and no more than 7 people.

Additions to the List of Essential Businesses:

• Bicycle repair and supply shops may engage in the sale of bicycles on-line only and provided that all bicycles are delivered to a place of residence or Essential Business.

• Service providers that enable residential real estate transactions (including rentals, leases and home sales), including, but not limited to, real estate agents, escrow agents, notaries, and title companies, provided that appointments and other residential viewings must only occur virtually or, if virtual viewing is not feasible, by appointment with no more than two visitors at a time, both whom must reside within the same household or living unit, and one individual showing the unit (except in-person visits are not allowed when the occupant is present in the residence).

• Automotive dealerships may engage in the purchase or sale of automobiles (including cars, trucks, motorcycles and motorized scooters) on-line only and provided that all vehicles are delivered to a place of residence or Essential Business.

All Essential Businesses must have Social Distancing Protocol

• All essential businesses must prepare and post by no later than April 12, 2020, a “Social Distancing Protocol” for each of their facilities in the County frequented by the public or employees. The Social Distancing Protocol must be posted at or near the entrance of the relevant facility and shall be easily viewable by the public and employees. A copy of the Social Distancing Protocol must also be provided to each employee performing work at the facility. All essential businesses shall implement the Social Distancing Protocol and provide evidence of its implementation to any authority enforcing the Order upon demand.

Detailed order (pdf) at https://vcportal.ventura.org/covid19/docs/2020-04-09_COVID19_PH_Order_April_9_2020.pdf

City of Calabasas to Require Face Coverings at Essential Business Effective April 10th

Face Coverings Requirement in Calabasas effective April 10, 2020

Any person shopping or working at a grocery store, restaurant, or other essential business within the City of Calabasas shall wear a face covering while they are at the location. A face covering can include bandanas, scarves, or cloth masks which covers both the mouth and nose of an individual. Employers are required to provide, pay for, or reimburse their employees for face coverings as needed to protect their employees.

Residents should not purchase N95 or surgical masks, as these are limited resources needed for the healthcare community and first responders. This is intended to protect employees, customers and residents.

A grocery store, restaurant, or other essential business may refuse admission or service to any individual who fails to wear a face covering as required by this order. All grocery stores, restaurants, or other essential businesses are further required to develop and implement a written, comprehensive COVID-19 exposure control plan, to be approved by the City within 3 days from the date of this Order, which includes control measures such as social distancing; face coverings and personal protective equipment, hygiene; decontamination procedures, and training.

Real Estate Sales Open Houses and Showings. Open houses and other group real estate events and showings of a property or condominium offered for sale or lease are prohibited gatherings. Pre-scheduled showings or inspections of a property or condominium offered for sale or lease are permitted, but only if the minimum number of persons necessary to show or inspect the property are present and only if all persons present maintain six feet minimum distance, face coverings, and other social distancing requirements at all times.

www.cityofcalabasas.com