In the latest COVID-19 live stream, city officials discussed the newest number of coronavirus cases, reopening public spaces and street-sweeping.
COVID-19
On Monday, May 11, Mayor Robert Garcia announced that the City is now reporting 953 positive cases of coronavirus in Long Beach– along with 45 deaths.
According to Garcia, deaths at long-term care facilities now make up 35 of the fatalities.
The mayor also stated that the other 10 deaths come from transmission between the public, which the mayor said was a good sign.
“We hope that number stays low […] as we move into the slow reopening in the weeks ahead of us,” Garcia said.
Reopening
Mayor Garcia also discussed the partial reopening of the City’s parks and walking paths along the beach.
Last week, the City announced that it would be reopening some of the parks to allow residents to walk, run or bike through public parks or beaches.
The City also allowed hiking trails and tennis centers to resume business.
However, residents are still required to practice proper social distancing and cannot use the beaches, picnic or meet in large groups.
The mayor stated that the loosening of the restrictions has been going smoothly so far and that most people seem to be following the social-distancing guidelines issued by the City.
However, he stated that some people are still not taking proper precautions in public.
“That is really unfortunate,” Garcia said. “We’re asking people to do the right thing to take care of each other and follow the guidelines.”
In the coming weeks, the mayor stated that the City would be tracking the data regarding infections, hospitalizations, hospital capacity and more to determine if the reopening is going smoothly.
Dr. Anissa Davis, the Public Health Official for Long Beach, stated that reopening public spaces will look more like slowly turning on a light, rather than flipping a switch.
“If we go too fast and open up too quickly, we might see more infections, and then we’ll have to dial backward and turn the light back down,” Davis said.
“The best thing we can do for those we love and miss is to continue staying at home, and connecting by phone or video chat.”
She reminded residents to take proper health precautions, as well as stay home if they feel sick.
Street-sweeping
Garcia also reminded residents that the City would resume street-sweeping services, along with parking citations on Monday, May 18.
In March, the City Council decided to place a freeze on street-sweeping tickets to help lift some of the burden felt by parking impacted neighborhoods– many of which saw a rise in people staying home from work.
Now, the mayor and the rest of the City Council has voted to end the freeze to resume sweeping street duties.
“We need to street-sweep. It’s now at a point where it’s a health and safety issue,” Garcia said.
As a service to residents, the City has opened some parking lots and structures to provide free parking.
Residents can apply for a free permit to park their car at one of these locations through the City’s website.
The freeze on citations officially ends on Friday, May 15, but tickets will begin on the following Monday.
I just have a question: where can I find information about the swimming pools opening?