As protestors take to the streets throughout Orange County over the stay-at-home order, officials are weighing options for public access to beaches and parks.
Tuesday, May 19, 2020
LA County Targeting Fourth Of July For Reopening Restaurants, Malls, Retail Stores
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – The target date for a reopening of Los Angeles County stores, restaurants and other retail outlets has been set for July 4, officials said Tuesday.
Supervisor Kathryn Barger made the announcement during a meeting of the county’s Economic Resiliency Task Force, which “expressed a goal for the safe reopening of Los Angeles County as early as July 4.”
The July 4 date indicates a goal of the full or staged reopening of retail, restaurants, and malls.
“The economic and sociological impacts created by the COVID-19 shutdown have hurt our vulnerable populations the most,” Barger said. “The County, in partnership with our Task Force members and key stakeholders, is prepared to move forward with recommendations that ensure the safety and well-being of employees and customers while safeguarding public health.”
According to Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) president Bill Allen, there have been more than 1 million unemployment claims filed in L.A. County to date. More than 75% of the projected job losses have an average annual earning of less than $50,000, with restaurants and retail industries hit the hardest.
Task force leaders agreed that prolonged closures will continue to deteriorate the ability of most small businesses to reopen and will cause permanent loss of jobs and wages for millions countywide, Barger said.
Meanwhile, also on Tuesday, county public health director Barbara Ferrer announced 76 more deaths linked to COVID-19, raising the county’s total to 1,913 deaths.
Ferrer said as more employees return to work and businesses reopen, those who can continue to work remotely are encouraged to do so.
Employers are being asked to symptom checks on employees upon arriving at work and allow frequent break periods to wash their hands.
Magic Johnson To Provide $100M In Coronavirus Relief Loans To Minority-Owned Businesses
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Lakers legend and business mogul Magic Johnson announced Monday that he will provide $100 million in loans to minority-owned businesses struggling amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Magic Johnson speaks to the press after resigning as Lakers President of Basketball Operations before a game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Staples Center on April 9, 2019 in Los Angeles. (Getty Images)
Johnson reported that his Equitrust Life Insurance Company, which he owns through his company Magic Johnson Enterprises, will provide $100 million in capital for loans through the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
Equitrust will team up with MBE Capital Partners, a non-bank lender which specializes in providing financing to minority and female-owned businesses, according to the Wall Street Journal. The money will immediately go towards 5,000 PPP loans which the SBA has already approved.
“I’m excited to announce that my company Equitrust will be partnering with MBE Capital Partners to deploy $100M in PPP loans to minority-owned businesses!” Magic tweeted Monday.
The PPP program has faced serious criticism over allegations that large companies were able to obtain loans while small businesses fell through the cracks.
Nowhere was this better highlighted than by the news that Magic’s former team, the Lakers – one of the richest sports franchises in the world – somehow obtained a $4.6 million in PPP money last month.
The Lakers later returned the money.
“We knew why the money was gone and couldn’t trickle down to small businesses, especially small minority businesses, because they didn’t have those great relationships with the banks,” Johnson told WSJ. “So this was easy for us to understand.”
The $349 billion PPP program money – which was approved as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) earlier this month — dried up so quickly that Congress was forced to pass a second relief package in April which includes another $310 billion.
Ahmaud Arbery case: Police attempted to use Taser on Ahmaud Arbery during 2017 incident, bodycam video shows
Police in Glynn County, Georgia, attempted to use a Taser on Ahmaud Arbery during an incident in 2017, according to a police report and police body camera video obtained by The Guardian.
$125M program offering economic relief for California undocumented immigrants
A $125 million program is combining state and private funds to provide checks from $500 to $1,000 for undocumented immigrants who aren't eligible for stimulus checks.
Tattoo Artist Daniel Silva Charged With Murder In Crash That Killed YouTube Personality Corey La Barrie
VAN NUYS (CBSLA) — Daniel Silva, star of “Ink Master,” has been charged with murder in connection with a fatal crash that killed YouTube personality Corey La Barrie on his 25th birthday.
Silva, 26, of North Hollywood, was allegedly behind the wheel of the luxury sports car when it crashed May 10, killing La Barrie, who
was a passenger in the vehicle, according to Los Angeles County prosecutors.
According to police, Silva was driving a 2020 McLaren 600LT eastbound on Houston Street at a high rate of speed when he lost control of the vehicle, running off the road and colliding with a stop sign and tree at the intersection of Houston Street and Carpenter Avenue in Valley Village.
Police said Silva then exited the vehicle and attempted to leave the scene of the accident but was stopped by citizens who came to render aid.
The Los Angeles Fire Department responded to the scene and transported both Silva and La Barrie to the hospital.
La Barrie was part of a YouTube duo with Crawford Collins, and the two had more than 100,000 subscribers on their YouTube channel, according to a statement issued by Michael Kraut and Brian Breiter, attorneys representing the La Barrie family.
“To lose a loved one is tragic in and of itself, but the devastating details of this case make it almost impossible for Corey’s family to come to
terms with,” Breiter said in the statement issued Monday.
Silva, who appeared on the tattoo-competition show, remains jailed in lieu of $2 million bail while awaiting arraignment.
If convicted, he could face up to 15 years to life in state prison.
(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)
Ventura County Officials Unanimously Approve Plan For Accelerated Reopening
VENTURA (CBSLA) — Matthew Bryant said he could not wait to dine inside restaurants again as he ate his lunch inside his car Tuesday in Moorpark.
“I just sat here in the shade and had my lunch,” he said.
And his wish to eat out might happen sooner rather than later as the Ventura County Board of Supervisors Tuesday unanimously approved a plan that would allow them to lift restrictions at an accelerated pace if approved by the state.
“This could move very rapidly,” Dr. Robert Levin, the county’s public health officer, said.
According to Levin, people could soon be dining inside restaurants, shopping inside stores and even considering a return to the classroom in the fall.
“It would be modified,” he said. “So, perhaps, one approach might be kids would be in the class on Mondays and Wednesdays, and then another group would be in the class on Tuesdays and Thursdays.”
Levin said the county has met the state’s standards — such as reducing hospitalizations due to COVID-19 and increasing testing — to move forward in the reopening process.
“We have an enemy in our presence,” he said. “And we need to balance our movement forward with making sure that we’re controlling that enemy.”
The county currently operates two drive-thru testing sites offering free testing by appointment only.
- Oxnard Performing Arts Center, 800 Hobson Way, Oxnard;
- Thousand Oaks Library – Newbury Park Branch, 2332 Borchard Road, Newbury Park
And starting Wednesday, free drive-thru testing will be offered at three sites throughout the county. Appointments are not required for the following locations that will operate Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Ventura College, 4667 Telegraph Road, Ventura;
- Moorpark College, 7075 Campus Road, Moorpark;
- 128 S. Hallock Drive, Santa Paula
As of Monday evening, Ventura County had reported 825 cases of COVID-19 and 25 virus-related deaths.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)