Reopening. It’s a word we have waited close to two months to hear. Some of the rural counties in California got a jump on the rest of the state earlier this week, defying statewide restrictions.
In Sutter and Yuba counties, north of Sacramento, restaurants, tattoo parlors and florists have opened their doors. The health officer for the counties ordered the easing of restrictions. But there was fallout. California officials warned that some businesses risked losing their licenses to operate. Health officer Dr. Phuong Luu also expressed concern that people were not social distancing or wearing face coverings while visiting local shops.
Unlike metropolitan areas of California, the counties have been little affected by the coronavirus crisis, with only one suspected case as of Tuesday.
The rest of California begins the first steps in easing stay-at-home orders on Friday.
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Ted Crumby, left, of Meridian, and Dennis Hillard, of Citrus Heights, meet for lunch at Linda’s Soda Bar and Grill in Yuba City.
(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
Customers wait in line for body piercings at Heart & Soul Tattoo in Yuba City.
(Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)
Tattoo artist Andrew Wagner applies an octopus design to the arm of Jordan Curiel at Heart & Soul Tattoo in Yuba City. The shop closes at 3 p.m. for an hour to sanitize the space.
(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
Genesis Nieves, with Heart & Soul Tattoo owner Jake Hunter, has come to the Yuba City for a nose piercing.
(Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)
Kim Hamilton, floral designer, prepares arrangements for Mother’s Day at Elegante Petals in Yuba City.
(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
Wes Heryford, center, works on Ben Martin at Butte House Barber Shop in Yuba City. Heryford closed his business but said: “It was difficult to pay my bills and make ends meet for my family.”
(Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)
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Plumas Street in downtown in Yuba City.
(Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)
Anthony Frank, center, and wife Melia Campbell enjoy their first night out in weeks at Silver Dollar Saloon in Marysville. Sutter and Yuba counties defied state orders in allowing sit-down dining early.
(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
Lanie Gil cleans a table where guests recently had lunch at Courthouse Cafe in Marysville.
(Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)
A guest leaves with a take-out order at Courthouse Cafe in Marysville.
Gary Coronado was a staff photographer for the Los Angeles Times from 2016-24. He is a 2007 Pulitzer Prize finalist in feature photography for images of Central Americans risking life and limb as they jump aboard the trains from southern Mexico bound for the United States and a 2005 Pulitzer Prize finalist in breaking news photography for team coverage of hurricanes. He began freelancing for the Orange County Register and relocated to South Florida in 2001, when he was awarded a fellowship through the Freedom Forum. Coronado grew up in Southern California and graduated from USC.
