ANAHEIM, Calif. — State health officials released long-awaited guidance for the reopening of theme parks amid the coronavirus pandemic Tuesday, but the restrictions will likely translate to several more months of closures at major attractions such as Disneyland and Universal Studios Hollywood.
Under the guidelines, major theme parks will only be permitted to reopen in counties that have reached the least-restrictive "yellow" tier of the state's four-tier COVID-19 economic-reopening roadmap.
Orange County, home to the Disneyland resort, is in the "red," or second, tier of that matrix. Los Angeles County, home to Universal Studios, is languishing in the "purple," or most-restrictive, tier of the state's program.
Even when they are permitted to open, theme parks will have to adhere to a series of restrictions, most notably an attendance limit of 25% of normal capacity. Theme parks will also have to require advance reservations. Visitors will be screened for virus symptoms before being granted entry, and face coverings will be mandatory for all guests, except when they are eating or drinking.
The state guidelines allow smaller, more localized theme parks to open in counties that are in the "orange," or third tier, of the state's guidelines. Those operations will be limited to outdoor attractions only, with capacity limited to 25% or a total of 500 people, whichever is less. Tickets for such attractions can only be sold to visitors who live in the same county.
Dr. Mark Ghaly, California's health secretary, said the guidance was developed in part from information gathered by teams the state sent to theme parks that have reopened in other parts of the country.
"They came back with lots of valuable lessons," he said. "Things that we saw that we were very reassured by were really great management of how lines were managed, keeping separate groups apart while in a line, while on a ride. Really great lessons learned there. But also some things that raised some concern -- the level of mixing even without masks that seemed very random and concerning to us. So those different areas of information were really assimilated and guided where we landed with this guidance."
Ghaly conceded that under the guidance, there is no way to predict when major theme parks such as Disney or Universal might be able to reopen, since the decision will be dependent on countywide coronavirus numbers.
"I think there's a lot of work we can do together ... to do what we can to reduce transmission in our counties, and there is a path forward there,'' he said. "We do not know when, but we do know how.''
The state's guidelines were met with immediate condemnation from some Orange County officials, who have been pushing hard for the reopening of Disneyland -- a major revenue generator. Disney officials have also been lobbying the state for the chance to reopen, with the dispute even leading to former Disney CEO Bob Iger's resignation from a state task force of business leaders providing guidance on coronavirus issues.
"The guidelines fail working families and small businesses,'' Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu said. "As painful as this is, Disney and the city of Anaheim will survive. But too many Anaheim hotels, stores and restaurants will not survive another year of this. Many are family businesses. The jobs they provide support other families.
"We can safely and responsibly open our theme parks and convention center soon. The unions of the Disneyland Resort agree and support the reopening of the theme parks in Tier 3 -- not Tier 4, which would wipe out jobs in our city and destroy lives," he added.
In a statement, the president of Disneyland Resort said the company has proven it can reopen safely with proper health protocols.
"Nevertheless, the state of California continues to ignore this fact, instead mandating arbitrary guidelines that it knows are unworkable and that hold us to a standard vastly different from other reopened businesses and state-operated facilities," the statement read.
Also Tuesday, the state laid out new rules for professional sporting events, allowing spectators at 20% capacity once a county is in the less restrictive orange tier 3.
Tickets, which must be bought in advance, can only be sold to residents within a 120-mile radius of the venue. Tailgating would also be prohibited, according to Dr. Ghaly.
There was some good news Tuesday, for personal care businesses, such as tattoo parlors, and hair removal and massage businesses. They will be allowed to re-open, with restrictions, in all counties no matter what tier they happen to be in.