San Francisco Mayor Breed Notes Reopening Progress, People's Frustrations 6 Months Into COVID-19 Restrictions
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) – Mayor London Breed acknowledged people's frustrations in dealing with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, as the Bay Area marks six months since the coronavirus led to a host of restrictions and closures.
"People are pretty much tired of what we're living in, as it relates to COVID. I'm tired of talking about it. I'm tired of living in it. I'm tired of doing all the things you are tired of doing, because I want to enjoy my life. I want to live. I want to go back to normal," Breed said at Tuesday's briefing on the city's COVID-19 response.
"Unfortunately, this is a deadly virus and this has a significant impact on our most vulnerable, including our elderly," the mayor went on to say.
Breed noted progress being made on the city's long road to reopening. On Monday, several sectors, including gyms and nail salons, were allowed to resume limited indoor operations. Monday also marked the opening of nearly four dozen "community hubs," where students in need can receive in-person learning support.
The mayor also expressed hope about eventually reopening schools. Another sector set to reopen are indoor museums, with the De Young Museum, Asian Art Museum and Legion of Honor all announcing plans to reopen in late September into October, with capacity limited at 25 percent.
"This is progress, but it's not enough, and it's not certain. The only way we continue in this direction has everything to do with each and every one of us," Breed said.
The mayor said they are continuing to work with Gov. Gavin Newsom's office in seeking an extension of the state's moratorium on commercial evictions, which is set to expire at the end of September.
"Our small businesses have been struggling for months, and even as we are reopening, these businesses are barely getting by," Breed said. "We need to do everything we can to keep our businesses stable and our commercial corridors from seeing even more vacancies."
Health director Dr. Grant Colfax said there have been more than 10,430 cases in the city and 91 deaths since the pandemic began. Colfax noted 51 percent of positive cases were in the city's Latinx community.
The health director said COVID-19 hospitalizations are up 29 percent so far this month, but during a question and answer session, Colfax said it was too soon to tell if it was related to gatherings over the Labor Day weekend.
In regards to testing, Colfax said they are conducting 3,300 tests per day, exceeding the city's goal, with turnaround times for results averaging 1.5 days.
Colfax reiterated the importance of continuing practices to curb the spread of the virus, including social distancing, mask wearing and hand washing.
"We are indeed in this for the long haul," Colfax said. "Our perseverance, our resilience and our hope is necessary for us to carry forward."
