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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2021
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BUSINESS
Wild Fields Brewhouse Adapting and Shifting Throughout the Pandemic
GOVERNMENT
After implementing “Plan C,” Wild Fields beer can now be purchased throughout California
News from the City: ‘Atascadero Know Your Zone’
By CONNOR ALLEN connor@atascaderonews.com
By RACHELLE RICKARD Atascadero City Manager
ATASCADERO — There are few things more challenging to do in a normal year than open up a new successful business. Make that business a restaurant and brewery, and the odds become even a little tougher, toss in a global pandemic. It seems nearly impossible, but that is exactly what Wild Field Brewhouse in Atascadero accomplished in 2020. Wild Fields Brewhouse opened its doors for its grand opening in 2019, on Dec. 6, but it wasn’t long before they were forced to shut their doors and get very creative with their business plan. They have been forced to continually adapt to the ever-changing rules and regulations that have come with COVID-19 but have rolled with punches hoping to come out stronger on the other side. “February felt pretty promising. We felt pretty good, and then by Mar. 10, we saw our sales drastically fall,” Co-owner Jacque Fields said. “We closed on Mar. 16. Literally three months into being open. Then we moved strictly into beer, we tried having the kitchen open for two weeks, but it was just too hard with my husband and I doing all of it.” Faced with no ability to serve food and no end in sight, Wild Fields moved to curbside pick-up, creating fun deals and ways for residents to still get a hold of their fantastic beer. With their numbers dropping drastically, Jacque and Ryan Fields reached out to their landlord, the Madonna Group, who graciously offered their help in such a difficult time. In May, after a few months operating just on creative
Chopped Sweets ‘Bejeweled and Bedazzled’ episode, filmed in February 2020, right before California went into lockdown due to the pandemic. Judges for the episode were Natalie Sideserf and Maneet Chauhan. “It was a ton of fun, and it is very much like what you see--it is really only 30 minutes, you are using foreign equipment that you don’t know how to use. You are trying not to trip over hundreds of camera wires and people because they are at every angle of you,” Ryan said.
tascadero residents will soon be hearing a lot about “Know Your Atascadero Zone!” The City’s highest priority, above all, is the safety of the community and its citizens. A vital part of emergency preparedness is having accurate and timely communication with community members. The City of Atascadero is very excited to introduce “Know Your Atascadero Zone” and Zonehaven, an online program that will provide rapid, accurate communication to residents that may be threatened by various types of emergencies or natural disasters, including wildland fire. We’ll begin by urging everyone to look up their property address to learn their zone and enroll in the alerts. These alerts will provide instant information about any emergencies that may occur within their neighborhood, along with detailed instructions on what steps they should take and how to safely avoid danger. To implement this new emergency information service, our community has been divided into zones based on geographical features, population, and evacuation needs. This information will be used to identify areas that might need to evacuate during an emergency. Additionally, traffic flow studies will help to ensure that any necessary evacuation traffic moves quickly and safely. Real-time information provided by this program will also allow emergency responders to make the best decisions quickly, enabling them to limit property damage and save lives. The City continually works towards ensuring our community’s safety, and we’re happy to implement our new “Know Your Atascadero Zone” program to help further that effort. Our goal is that every resident knows their property’s zone, signs up for the emergency alerts so that they’ll be prepared, has the information they need when it’s needed, and knows what actions they should take at the time of an emergency. Atascadero Know Your Zone At the City Council meeting on Jan. 26, Atascadero Fire and Emergency Services introduced
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Ryan and Jacque Fields owners of Wild Fields Brewery faced the challenges of 2020 by remaining focused and dedicated to their dream. Photo courtesy of Wild Fields
beer sales, Wild Fields Brewhouse was once again allowed to open its doors for some indoor dining. Hearing the news, the owners sprang into action, hiring and training new staff but once again, the rug was pulled out from underneath them just a few weeks later. “We got to the end of May when they said we could reopen with some indoor dining,” Jacque said. “So, we rehired a team and got people back in place. A lot of our team members didn’t come back due to concerns with COVID or family members they had to take care of or those sorts of things.” For a few weeks, it seemed as operations might go back to as normal as can be during a pandemic but come July,
2021 FAIR
they were once again forced to close their doors and began searching for a new way to get business. “In July, we decided to focus strictly on distribution,” Jacque said. “It was always our Plan C, but it was forced to become Plan A. It is not the best financially, wholesaling your product, there isn’t a whole lot of money there, but it is something, and it keeps our brand alive.” Initially, Plan C was nothing more than a distant goal to reach sometime in the future after establishing themselves. Still, it has since become something of a life raft amid the tumultuous waters of the pandemic. CONTINUED ON PAGE A15
SWEET COMPETITION
Libby Ryan ‘Just Baked’ Her Way to National Competition California Mid-State Fair Board are ‘Cautiously Optimistic’ By CAMILLE DEVAUL camille@atascaderonews.com PASO ROBLES — California Mid-State Fair (CMSF) board members are “cautiously optimistic” the show will go on for a 2021 fair. CMSF board members are developing two plans for this summer’s fair scheduled set for Jul. 21 - Aug. 1. Either way, the fair will be celebrating its 75th Anniversary. Tom Keffury, the CMSF spokesperson, explains the public’s safety is their top priority. Plan A for CMSF is to have a fair, with all California’s safety measures in place. However, Plan A can only happen if the county moves into the yellow tier. If San Luis Obispo County makes it to the Yellow Tier with enough time, the fair will go on with safety protocols in place. To be in the Yellow Tier, the county must have only one new COVID-19 case per 100,000 residents and have CONTINUED ON PAGE A15
SPORTS
Ryan had no idea that after filming last February, her life and business would change dramatically due to COVID-19 By CAMILLE DEVAUL camille@atascaderonews.com PASO ROBLES — Local baker, Libby Ryan, competed on Food Network’s Chopped Sweets which aired this past week. Ryan, Just Baked Cake Studio and Bakery owner, competed on the show’s ‘Bejeweled and Bedazzled’ episode and took home second place! Chopped Sweets is hosted by Scott Conant, an American celebrity chef, restaurateur, and frequent host and judge of many Food Network competition shows. During Chopped Sweets, Conant challenges four pastry chefs to create desserts using random ingredients with an extremely tight time limit. Chefs competed in three rounds showcasing a different technique in each one: candied, baked, and frosted. After each round of competition, one pastry chef is eliminated from the competition. The last chef standing gets to claim the $10,000 prize! About three years ago, Ryan was on another Food Network competition to make Cat Cora and Nichole Ehrlich’s wedding cake. Cora made history in 2005 by becoming the first woman Iron Chef. While Ryan did not win the competition to make Cora’s wedding cake, she was hired to cater Cora’s rehearsal dinner. Food Network invited Ryan back to compete on another Food Network show. After several Zoom interviews, Ryan was asked to compete on
PUBLIC WORKS
COVID-19 UPDATE
Just Baked owner Libby Ryan talks pandemic challenges and competing on Food Network’s ‘Chopped Sweets.’ Contributed photo
SOCIETY
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WEATHER
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