The Goleta City Council voted Tuesday to temporarily allow additional personal care services to operate outdoors during the coronavirus pandemic.
The resolution for additional outdoor services was part of the council’s consent agenda. The council unanimously adopted the resolution, along with other consent items, with no further discussion.
The vote amended the previously adopted emergency order for restaurant dining and other uses program, which allowed restaurants, retail businesses, fitness classes and faith-based gatherings to temporarily operate in open-air spaces and parking lots.
With Tuesday’s vote, the order now applies to hair salons, barbershops, nail salons, massage parlors and tattoo parlors.
All businesses listed in the order must keep indoor operations closed and follow all social distancing measures while operating outside.
All employees and patrons must also wear face coverings, the boundary of the outdoor dining must not exceed four feet in height and all fire hydrants must remain unobstructed.
If a business violates program conditions, its temporary use area expansion permit can be revoked and the business will be required to close.
“Many of these businesses were struggling to financially recover following the first mandatory closure in March, and some may not be able to survive a second closure. This Order is intended to assist the economic recovery of these establishments and to permit them to continue to operate under State and County health orders,” the order states.
The council also heard an update on the Old Town sidewalk improvement project, which began construction in March. The construction for the project was initially awarded to Toro Enterprise in December 2019.
The project plans to add or connect sidewalks to at least one side of all streets in Old Town Goleta, as well as construct 39 angled parking spaces on the east side of North Magnolia Avenue. The project will also include the installation of new street lighting “at intersections where feasible,” according to James Campero, deputy public works director.
Mr. Campero, who spoke at Tuesday night’s meeting about the project, said the bulk of the project is currently projected to be completed in mid-September. The project is expected to be under its budget of $3.16 million and result in $400,000 savings for the city.
“I’m usually happy on on-schedule and within budget, but it looks like the project teams on target to exceed my expectations by completing the project ahead of schedule and under budget,” Mr. Campero said.
He noted that there have been a few complaints from residents, but overall the “positive feedback we received far outweighed the negative ones.”
“Everyone wants their street improved, they just don’t want the construction delays, detours and overall inconvenience that come along with it,” he said. “It’s just the nature of the beast.”
Council members praised the project’s progress, with James Kyriaco calling the transformation “almost mind boggling.”
“(The project) is long overdue and very much needed,” Mr. Kyriaco said. “The increase in the parking capacity, the ingenuity that was displayed here, the hard work, the scale of the project particularly in that area, is really something else.”
Mayor Pro Tempore Kyle Richards added that “the enormity of this project can’t be understated.”
“It doesn’t sound like a very big deal when you just call it a sidewalk project, but I’ve been checking this area out frequently, just monitoring the progress and riding my bike through the area, and it really is extraordinary,” Mr. Richards said.
Director of the COAST Safe Routes to School Program, Kim Stanley, addressed the council on the project, calling it a “facelift,” while applauding the city and project team.
“What a facelift,” she said.
“The families who have children attending La Patera and Kellogg schools were walking to bus stops under dodgy conditions in the streets, often towing toddlers along beside them. Parades of students who attend Goleta Valley Junior High and Dos Pueblos were also walking in the street to the bus stop on Hollister near 7-Eleven because there was just no other option.
“Pedestrian access and safety has been greatly improved by this project.”
email: jmercado@newspress.com
