‘My Darlin’ Quarantine’
Million Meals Challenge extended
Santa Barbara appraiser Elizabeth Stewart writes fictional stories about the pandemic - A3
Our 165th Year
Local food bank, La Cumbre Plaza to continue providing meals - A7
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F R I DAY, O C TOBE R 2 , 2 0 2 0
Back indoors Restaurants approved to provide partial inside services
KENNETH SONG/NEWS-PRESS
A sign has been placed in front of the Santa Barbara County Courthouse’s Great Arch seeking the public’s support for its restoration.
Restoration underway at SB courthouse By JOSH GREGA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
KENNETH SONG/NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS
Joe’s Cafe in Santa Barbara re-commenced indoor dining, albeit at a limited capacity of approximately 10 tables, on Thursday.
By GRAYCE MCCORMICK NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Restaurants in Santa Barbara County got the OK to welcome a small number of customers back inside to dine, restoring a slight sense of normalcy for the businesses. Per the Health Officer Order that went into effect on Wednesday, restaurants, along with places of worship, movie theaters, museums, zoos and aquariums, may now operate indoor services at 25% capacity, and gyms and fitness centers at 10% capacity. However, bars, breweries, distilleries and family entertainment centers are still restricted to outdoor operations. The gradual reopening is part of the county moving up to the red tier, the second highest tier according to the California Department of Public Health. This small step allows for The Cruisery in the 500 block of State Street to reopen their bar in the back of the restaurant, called “Unbearable,” at 5 p.m. today, after being closed for three months. “We’re probably down 30 to 40% compared to where we would be,” said The Cruisery owner Aron Ashland. “I think this may give us a chance to get back to where we were.” He told the News-Press the 25% capacity allows the restaurant to utilize 14 tables, all six feet apart. The Cruisery’s staff had their indoor operations ready by
Wednesday evening. “Most people are still probably going to choose outside if they get the opportunity,” the owner continued. “It’s probably only really going to help when TV events are on and when the weather changes.” He added that The Cruisery has met pushback on COVID-19 rule enforcement, such as requiring each customer seated at the table to order food, rather than accepting just one food item for the entire table. “A lot of our competition must not be following the rules, because everybody says, ‘Well, they’re not doing that,’” Mr. Ashland said. “Now we’re telling people to wear masks that aren’t. It’s sometimes uncomfortable.” Santa Barbara Wine Therapy in the 700 block of State Street opened its indoor services on Thursday, including five tables spaced out accordingly. For Wine Therapy, the staff’s focus will be preventing parties from mingling. “That’s the hardest part with large parties, trying to get people to follow the rules, stay seated, not mingle and order food,” said Wine Therapy general manager Eryn Hecker. “We’re definitely trying to provide a safe environment for everybody.” She said the heat wave has led people to embrace the new order with indoor air conditioning, but people will probably still choose to sit outside most of the time. “I think it’s going to help Please see indoors on A8
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A construction crew was at work on the Santa Barbara County Courthouse’s Great Arch on Thursday morning, carrying out the first phase of a Santa Barbara Courthouse Legacy Foundation project to restore and preserve its sandstone masonry. The first stage of the multiphase project entailed removing a white coating on the sandstone wall of the Anacapa Street side of the arch, which has caused the sandstone to deteriorate at an accelerated rate. According to Courthouse Legacy Foundation board Please see courthouse on A6 member Edwin Lenvik, exactly
In recognition of Hazel Mortensen Solvang asked to ban horse-drawn carriages to honor longtime resident
By MITCHELL WHITE NEWS-PRESS ASSOCIATE EDITOR
At top, The Cruisery opened up to limited-capacity indoor dining on Wednesday evening, and will be able to reopen its bar, Unbearable, in the back at 5 p.m. today. Above, Santa Barbara Wine Therapy began limited-capacity indoor seating on Thursday, spreading out five tables for customers.
Although the Solvang City Council recently read a proclamation to honor longtime Solvang resident Hazel Mortensen, animal rights activists are calling for more. Members of PETA penned a letter to the council on Wednesday, requesting the city ban horse-drawn trolleys and carriages in the city to honor Ms. Mortensen, a longtime PETA supporter, who died Saturday at the age of 85. The city council voted in July to renew the business license for Solvang Trolley & Carriage
Company, while Ms. Mortensen called the industry cruel. “Horses are not meant to work on blacktop and inhale car fumes for hours, especially during hot summer days. Horse trolley as entertainment is not a Danish tradition,” Ms. Mortensen said, according to the letter. Ms. Mortensen started a petition to ban the trade, which garnered nearly 700 signatures. She was also known to speak out against horse-drawn carriages in letters to the editor and to the council. Melanie Johnson, assistant Please see trolley on A8
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ins ide Classified.............. A7 Life.................... A 3-4 Obituaries............. A7
what material the white coating is remains a mystery that wasn’t answered during contractor Evergreene Architectural Arts’ pre-project studies. “Evergreene, the conservators, did a phase one, phase two, and phase three study to determine what the problem was, how it could be solved, and what the direct application of the solution should be... I don’t know that they actually were able to determine what the white material was,” he said. Although the white coating was likely originally intended as a shield from water that causes sandstone to deteriorate over time, Evergreene vice president
Soduku................. A5 Weather................ A8
Wednesday’s SUPER LOTTO: 3-23-28-46-47 Meganumber: 25
Thursday’s DAILY 4: 6-8-1-6
Tuesday’s MEGA MILLIONS:14-39-43-44-67 Meganumber: 19
Thursday’s FANTASY 5: 4-10-20-24-26
Thursday’s DAILY DERBY: 06-01-09 Time: 1:43.63
Wednesday’s POWERBALL: 14-18-36-49-67 Meganumber: 18
Thursday’s DAILY 3: 2-3-8 / Thursday’s Midday 8-1-4