|
Last Friday, we hosted a Zoom webinar for local businesses to share experiences, lessons learned, and plans for the future as businesses transition to each stage of reopening. The City’s goal was a business-led discussion on what safety measures can and should be taken to make re-opening safe and financially feasible for Scotts Valley businesses, that could then be shared with State and local officials, in hopes that best industry practices could be incorporated into future guidelines.
Currently, California is in the early phase of Stage 2 of the Resilience Recovery Roadmap, which allows for lower-risk retailers to offer curbside delivery and pick-up only. The local County Order aligns with this guidance. More information about the business requirements for operations can be found here.
Please find an introduction and the webinar video links below and a full summary of recommendations from our businesses for your review.
Here were just a few of the things we heard local businesses are doing or planning to do in this challenging and evolving retail environment:
- Pivoting to online functionality, such as online shopping and smartphone-based waitlists for restaurant pick-up.
- Having hand sanitizer and other personal protective resources for curbside pick-up customers on site.
- Requiring all employees to wear masks and gloves and sanitizing workspace to the highest standards. Taking employee temperatures, inquiring about their virus exposure and sending them home with pay if they are sick.
- Making rent adjustments and deferments for tenants as necessary/possible for mutual survival.
- Exploring new ways to serve the most vulnerable when businesses are able to open more, such as video shopping and senior-exclusive dining hours.
- Evaluating new creative opportunities when businesses are able to open more such as allowing guests to “calendar in” visits to the business to limit the number of people in the space, mobile table ordering, expand spaces for effective social distancing in restaurants and stores, such as extending restaurant seating into common areas, blocked drive aisles or parking lots (as allowed) and creating greater space between tables indoors.
- Utilizing resources on hand that would otherwise be wasted to benefit employees and the local community. This includes sending surplus food home with employees and preparing unused facilities for potential overflow capacity for local hospitals.
- Requiring appointments and reducing/limiting the number of clients who will be provided with service to maximize social distancing.
We plan to continue organizing these webinars, including expanding to industry-specific panels. We also expect to share a survey with the business community early next week to learn more about your concerns and efforts. We will share those opportunities through this contact list.
Thank you for your service to our community, especially during these challenging times. We look forward to working with you through the recovery.
|
