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Home My WebLink About2020-09-03; Special Preparations for a Safe Labor Day Weekend During the COVID-19 Pandemic; Chadwick, ScottTo the members of the: "E"?: COUNCIL Date ~CA / CC ✓ CM _L ACM -'-DCM (3) 7 Sept. 3, 2020 Council Memorandum To: Honorable Mayor Hall mbers of the City Council From: Scott Chadwick, City an r {cityof Carlsbad Memo ID #2020184 Re: Special Preparations for a Safe Labor Day Weekend During the COVID-19 Pandemic The purpose of this memo is to inform City Council members of the special preparations undertaken by city staff to protect the health and safety of the public during the upcoming Labor Day weekend. Although the City of Carlsbad always plans ahead for busy times of year, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused staff to implement additional strategies to provide a safe environment for the public to enjoy this symbolic end to the summer season. Specific areas of focus include: • Compliance witb_t he-healtb-order, including weal"il'.'lg-face coverings and maint aining a 6 foot distance between those not from the same household. • Increased communication focused on visitors to Carlsbad. • Support for local businesses who count on the extra revenue typically associated with a holiday weekend. • Information about grilling safety and other precautions to avoid wildfires, especially at a time when the state's fire resources are stretched thin. • Preparation for the facilitation of peaceful protests, should that need arise. Following is an overview of some of the specific actions related to the upcoming holiday weekend: Law enforcement The Police Department has developed an incident action plan that indudes the following components: • Additional bicycle and ATV patrols will be assigned along the coast and the City of Carlsbad's police and fire rescue boat will be deployed on the Agua Hedionda Lagoon · Saturday through Monday. One staff person from the Police Department and one city lifeguard from the Fire Department will be onboard. • Additional direction will be given for community service officers and rangers to support public safety and public education efforts along the beaches. • Enhanced health order enforcement will focus on education with the option of written warning citations and strict enforcement of the Carlsbad Municipal Code. City Manager's Office City Hall 1200 Carlsbad Village Drive [ Carlsbad, CA 92008 [ 760-434-2820 t Special Preparations for a Safe Labor Day Weekend During the COVID-19 Pandemic Sept. 3, 2020 Page 2 • Traffic division officers will be conducting extra enforcement and education along Carlsbad Boulevard and in the Village to address pedestrian safety {September has been declared Pedestrian Safety Month by the California Office of Traffic Safety). • Officers will be deployed to specifically address DUI violations citywide. • Contingency plans are in place to activate additional staff resources if needed. Face covering distribution • Similar to Memorial Day weekend and the July 4th holiday, city staff and CERT volunteers will set up tents along the upper sea wall and at North Beach to raise awareness of the importance of face coverings and provide free disposable non-medical grade masks. • The City Manager and members of the city's leadership team have also volunteered to help staff the city tent, both to provide additional resources and demonstrate the city's commitment to slowing the spread of COVID-19. • Police officers and firefighter/paramedics will continue to keep a supply of these masks on hand to distribute as needed to the public. Closure of beach parking • The city will close its Ocean Street parking lot to general parking from Friday morning through Tuesday morning. Disabled parking, one-hour restaurant parking and official public safety vehicle parking will remain available in the lot. • The city will create prominent signs and social media messages to alert the public to the availability of parking for people with disabilities. • The city will actively enforce local parking laws to help protect neighborhood quality of life and access for local businesses. • City staff have been in communication with State Parks staff regarding its plans. At this time, the decision about beach parking has not yet been made. Beach and water safety The city's lifeguards will continue to be on duty at the north beach. area from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. through the Labor Day weekend with the following adjustments: • Staffing has been increased to ensure adequate resources in light of expected crowds (including a high percentage of visitors who may be less aware of beach safety precautions). • Lifeguards will emphasize education and preventive actions both for water safety and COVID-19 spread. • 1 personal watercraft will patrol the north beach area to back-up shore-based operations. • Regular announcements will be made from the lifeguard vehicles reminding the public of precautions to protect their health and safety. • Cones will be placed on the sand to maintain space to safely patrol the beach in the lifeguard vehicles. • Lifeguard staffing will be adjusted following Labor Day based on needs. Special Preparations for a Safe Labor Day Weekend During the COVID-19 Pandemic Sept. 3, 2020 Page 3 Business support • City staff will continue to communicate with businesses affected by the health orders to help clarify the rules and answer questions. • Fire prevention staff will be deployed to monitor occupancy levels and advise businesses of health and safety rules. • Signs will continue to be provided to businesses to help raise awareness of health precautions among their patrons. • A pre-Labor Day email notice will be coordinated with Visit Carlsbad, the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce and the Carlsbad Village Association to emphasize the importance of health ·and safety precautions and the latest health orders. • A pre-Labor Day email will be distributed to hotels and short term vacation rentals with a reminder to inform visitors of the latest health orders and offering to replenish signs and other materials to reinforce health order precautions. Sanitation • The city will utilize its contract with Urban Corps as needed to provide additional pressure washing along the sea wall and in the Village. • Additional pick up of trash and recycling containers has been arranged along the Ocean Street beach accesses and the sea wall, as well as in parks and the Village. • Crews will perform additional cleaning and restocking at the beach restrooms along the sea wall (most of these are restrooms managed for State Parks by the city). Communication and messaging • The city's new mask up campaign targeting those ages 20 to 29 will launch Labor Day weekend with digital ads, social media and other communication channels. • The city will continue with its Stay Safe to Stay Open campaign urging the community to support local businesses by following all health precautions to slow the spread of COVID-19. • Temporary banners and signs, including electronic message boards, will be placed at highly visible locations to create added emphasis on importance of health precautions. • Electronic fliers will be distributed through the school districts serving Carlsbad reminding families to adhere to health precautions. • Staff will request that principals of high schools serving Carlsbad include a personal message to students and parents about the importance of following health precautions. • Local media will be advised of the city's enhanced health and safety efforts to help spread the word that all those in Carlsbad are expected take all possible steps to slow the spread of COVID-19. • Increased health and safety messaging will be featured in all communication channels leading up to and through Labor Day weekend. Special Preparations for a Safe Labor Day Weekend During the COVID-19 Pandem.ic Sept. 3, 2020 Page 4 With these combined efforts, we expect the additional planning and resources put in place for Labor Day weekend will help create a safe environment for our residents, business owners and visitors. City staff welcomes any questions about these efforts and encourages City Council members to share these plans and city public safety messaging within their own networks, including social media and email newsletters. cc: Celia Brewer, City Attorney Geoff Patnoe, Assistant City Manager Gary Barberio, Deputy City Manager, Community Services Michael Calderwood, Fire Chief Neil Gallucci, Police Chief Paz Gomez, Deputy City Manager, Public Works David Graham, Chief Innovation Officer David Harrison, Assistant Director of Emergency Services Kristina Ray, Communication & Engagement Director Laura Rocha, Deputy City Manager, Administrative Services