Face Coverings Required at Essential Businesses

The City of Goleta requires face coverings be worn by both employees and patrons at restaurants, essential businesses, and all businesses allowed to reopen. The City passed a resolution at the May 5 City Council meeting. Face coverings include any fabric coverings, such as cloth masks, scarves and bandanas that cover the nose and mouth. This resolution is effective immediately.

City of Goleta Mayor Paula Perotte said, “Wearing a face covering is one of the key steps necessary to stop the spread of COVID-19 in our community. The relatively minor sacrifice is worth it if it saves lives and accelerates our economic recovery.”

The resolution requires essential businesses to prohibit the entry of any person not wearing a face covering and encourages businesses to sell face covers to patrons who do not have one. Workers are required to wash or sanitize their reusable face covering at least once a day and to discard any single use face coverings in a trash receptacle. All essential businesses must provide the face coverings for their workers and ensure access to clean, sanitary restrooms and the necessary cleansing products to observe hand sanitation as recommended and required by Santa Barbara County Health Orders. The City will utilize public education efforts to obtain voluntary compliance. The intent of this resolution is not to be punitive but to serve as a protective measure for workers, patrons, and the larger community. Essential businesses that do not adhere to this resolution after the City has tried to work with them may be subject to immediate business license suspension and mandatory closure for the duration of the resolution.  To learn more about the resolution please go to the full staff report here: https://tinyurl.com/y7jyq6fm.

This requirement for a face cover is applicable to all essential businesses and businesses that are allowed to be open in the future. A current list can be found in Public Health Officer Order 2020-8 (https://tinyurl.com/ydcjq6tn), but this is subject to change.

Prior to this resolution, the Goleta Chamber of Commerce partnered with local companies and the City of Goleta to launch Masks4Biz and provide the frontline staff of Goleta businesses with standard paper masks. With this community initiative, the Chamber hopes to support the health of essential workers, flatten the curve, and reduce the spread of COVID-19. The goal of Masks4Biz is to gift Goleta businesses with their first round of masks in recognition of their community dedication, and offer to help procure additional masks if needed. Visit the Chamber’s COVID-19 Business Resource page for more info.

Face coverings and other safety measures are also required by the City of Goleta at construction sites to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. These include: (1) handwashing facilities or hand sanitizer at entrances to construction projects; (2) shared tools and equipment shall be regularly sanitized; (3) signage shall be posted at entrances to construction projects or common areas where work is occurring instructing workers of social distancing  and sanitation requirements; (4) face coverings shall be worn by all persons present at the construction site; (5) workers shall not gather in groups larger than three during breaks and shall maintain a six-foot distance; (6) high risk areas shall be identified and controlled so social distancing is maintained; and (7) interactions when picking up or delivering equipment or materials shall be minimized to allow social distancing. View the full emergency order here.