Palo Alto Events Postponed/Cancelled Due To Coronavirus Concerns

From the City of Palo Alto:

March 9, 2020

To limit the potential spread of respiratory viruses and safeguard those at highest risk of catching COVID-19, the City of Palo Alto announced a series of actions to keep the community safe during this time of heightened public health risk.

In response to the Santa Clara County Public Health Department recent guidance to cancel large events in an effort to limit the spread of COVID-19 within the County, the City is postponing, cancelling or modifying over 30 events and programs from now until March 31, 2020. See current list further below in this article.

In addition, the City is encouraging all community members to keep our community safe by preventing the spread of respiratory viruses including COVID-19 by staying home if sick, use hygiene best practices including washing your hands, calling your health practitioner before going to the hospital if you have COVID-19 symptoms and other healthy lifestyle approaches. Help our most vulnerable community members stay safe during this public health emergency by demonstrating that hygiene is important for everyone. The City is continuing its work to provide essential services through thoughtful planning for several impact scenarios. The City has already implemented several operational changes to support first responders and safeguard our community from COVID-19 risks.

Cancelling or Postponing City Events

The City’s event and program cancellations and postponements approach includes evaluating events now through March 31, 2020. With the COVID-19 situation evolving worldwide, the City may expand the timeframe of its cancellation approach at any time. At this time, City Council meetings and Board and Commission meetings are proceeding as scheduled, though these meetings may see some adjustments to accommodate the Santa Clara County Public Health Department’s guidance on social distancing.

The City’s consideration of cancelled or postponed events includes events with an estimated attendance of over 100 people, or the event attendance is unknown but could draw a larger attendance; events over 100 people could also be modified and continue if changes can accommodate social distancing guidance; events that are longer than one hour in duration; events that typically attract at-risk populations including community members over the age of 50 to 80 and populations at highest risk, which are over the age of 80 or those that have preexisting health conditions such as lung disease and cancer.

The City is also evaluating on a case by case basis cancelling or postponing other events or programs where there are less than 100 people where the event cannot achieve social distancing recommended by the Santa Clara County Public Health Department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which means that attendees are not able to stay six feet from one another during the program/event. The City is also adjusting ticketing where possible to implement social distancing at certain events.

The following City events and programs are cancelled or postponed:*

• Rail Town Hall March Meetings: Thursday,March 12 from 6-8 p.m. at Palo Alto High School and March 26, 6-8 p.m. at the Elks Lodge
• Silver Screenings: Thursday,March 12 (event occurs monthly) next session cancelled
• Document Shredding Event: Saturday,March 14, 8 a.m.-12 p.m. (noon) at the SMaRT Station (Sunnyvale)
• Norooz Persian New Year Festival: Saturday,March 14 from 1-3 p.m. at the Palo Alto Art Center Auditorium
• Palo Alto Masters Meet: Saturday, March 14 at Rinconada Pool
• Art Center Foundation Members Day Trip to Sacramento: Saturday, March 14
• Landscape Design 101- How to Get Started: Saturday, March 14 from 9 a.m. -12 p.m. (noon) at Mitchell Park Library, El Palo Alto Room
• Arbor Day Festival: Sunday,March 15 from 1-5 p.m. at the Palo Alto Art Center
• Sunday Robot Show: Sunday, March 15 and Sunday, March 29
• Word on the Street Transportation Series: Thursday, March 19 from 6-9 p.m. at JLS Middle School
• Sensory Storytime: First session on Friday, March 20
• Fire Station 3 Grand Opening and Open House: Saturday, March 21 from noon to 2 p.m. at Fire Station 3
• Junior Museum and Zoo Family Sunday: Sunday, March 22
• North Ventura Coordinated Area Plan Working Group Meeting: Tuesday, March 24 from 5:30-8:30 p.m. at City Hall in the Community Room
• ADUs Community Meeting: Wednesday, March 25 at the Art Center
• Family Yoga: Friday, March 27
• Life Skills Toolkit- Cooking and Nutrition: Friday, March 27
• Minecraft Program: Sunday, March 27 at Mitchell Park Library
• Children’s Theater Cabaret Fundraiser: Saturday, March 28
• Racing Hearts 5K/10K Race: Cancelled by the event organizer, City is a co-sponsor. Sunday, March 29 at 7:30 a.m. in Downtown Palo Alto
• Sustainability Community Workshop: Tuesday, March 31 from 5:30-7 p.m. at Mitchell Park Community Center
• Family Storytime: Weekly events cancelled at Mitchell Park Library, Children’s Library, and Downtown Library locations
• Infant Lapsit Baby Storytime: Weekly events cancelled at Mitchell Park Library
• Intergenerational Storytime: Quarterly, 6-week sessions, last session on April 12. Senior and toddlers.
• Russian Storytime: Weekly events cancelled at Mitchell Park Library
• Wiggly Ones Baby Storytime: Weekly events cancelled at Rinconada Library and Mitchell Park Library

The following events or programs will be adjusted with revised locations, audience numbers/ticket sales reduced, or other approaches to follow Santa Clara County Public Health Department guidance on social distancing:

• XCAP Meeting: Wednesday, March 11 from 4-7 p.m. will continue with a revised location in the Council Chambers. Wednesday, March 18 from 4-7 p.m. and a tentative meeting on March 25 from 4-7 p.m. at City Hall in the Community Room may have future location changes or other adjustments to support social distancing, as needed.
• Children’s Theatre-Outreach Production: Multiple Dates at Palo Verde Elementary
• Palo Alto Children’s Theatre-Playhouse Beauty and the Beast: Friday,March 27 and Saturday, March 28 shows at 10 a.m. and 12 p.m.

*As of March 9, 2020, and subject to change at anytime.

A list of cancelled or postponed events will be listed on the City’s dedicated webpage on the coronavirus situation at www.cityofpaloalto.org/coronavirus and will be updated as more details are known. The City’s event calendar is being updated to reflect cancelled or postponed events, as needed.

Anticipating Temporary City Operational and Service Changes or Modifications

The City has already implemented several operational changes in response to the COVID-19 public health risk, including supplying protective gear for field staff, expanding 911 dispatcher protocols to support Police, Fire, emergency medical first responders, and Utilities staff, providing more hand sanitizer stations and enhanced cleaning in public facilities.

The City is evaluating modifications to service delivery and other efforts to maintain City staffing levels and providing essential services through thoughtful planning for several impact scenarios. The City anticipates more details to be released later this week on longer-term planning and potential service delivery modifications.

Informing the Community on the Latest Local Developments

The leading agency focused on public health and responding to the COVID-19 outbreak is the County of Santa Clara Public Health Department. As of Monday, March 9, there are 32 confirmed coronavirus cases in Santa Clara County and they are anticipating more cases. There is one case in Palo Alto, that the City is aware of, because of a Veterans Affairs (VA) Palo Alto Health Care System (a federal agency) hospital transfer from another County in California to Palo Alto. This case is unique and not related to a community spread of the virus. Instead, this case is a contained hospital transfer of an infected veteran from one hospital to another.

Santa Clara County Public Health Department guidance seeks to limit the community spread of COVID-19 and includes guidance for employers and the public to keep our community’s safe. Both Santa Clara County and San Mateo County are using 211 as a "call center" for persons with questions about COVID-19. Community members can also text "coronavirus" to 211211 for information and updates. There is also a public information phone number to gain updates by calling (408) 885-3980.

In addition, the City has set up a dedicated webpage and other communications efforts, including placing posters at high use public facilities and printed materials to help inform and provide tools to help keep our community safe.

For more on recent coronavirus updates and other online resources, go to the City’s dedicated webpage on this issue at www.cityofpaloalto.org/coronavirus

This press release was produced by the City of Palo Alto. The views expressed here are the author’s own.