STOCKTON, Calif. — A rise in coronavirus cases brought San Joaquin County onto a state watch list and, later, into another series of modified shutdowns. As some businesses wait out the penalty, Visit Stockton and the Stockton Healthy Pledge will have their nose to the grindstone in coming weeks.
The pledge is simple in goal and in practice. It's seal on the door telling guests that the business is following state and local safety guidelines, and it's backed up by the more than 200 businesses touting that sign and actually holding to those state and local guidelines.
“We thought what a great idea to get involved with that so that we’re all doing our very best to keep things as safe as possible,” said Kim Byrd, owner and head instructor of Moore's Martial Arts and Yoga Dojo. Her dojo announced their participation once they reopened in mid-June.
Byrd welcomed back the students itching to get back into the studio, but she also kept the virtual operation up and running. She said some people weren't entirely ready to come back.
For those who did, they found propped open doors and entry procedures that entailed health checks, shoe removal, and hand washing. Upon entering, the dojo lets them practice their craft in a personal 12x15 workspace and, upon students leaving, the dojo spends 20 minutes doing a deep cleaning of the studio for the next class.
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Arguably, the hardest change at the dojo was the suspension of sparring and physical contact. It was a back and forth decision, but Byrd read into what her students and student families were signaling.
“I’m just going to err a little bit more on the side of caution because I believe that’s where my clients live," Byrd said. "They’re not quite ready for that full-on contact.”
Byrd's dedication toward running a clean and safe dojo is part of what gives Visit Stockton's "Stockton Healthy Pledge" credibility, especially after the county's reopening was walked back.
“You can’t recover the economy if people don’t feel good going out," said Wes Rhea, Visit Stockton CEO. "I think it just kind of reinforces that message that this is serious.”
The pledge is open to any and all Stockton business, whether they are martial arts dojos, insurance companies, restaurants, or museums. More than 200 businesses have signed up in the six weeks since it started.
At this stage, it's both safety campaign and marketing campaign - keeping consumers safe and also encouraging them to support the economy.
"We know that, the businesses that have been struggling for four months now, they’re not going to be able to recover if half the people sit at home scared to go out,” Rhea said.
He said the walk back on reopening the county reinforces the message for the campaign. It lets business owners know that there are guidelines to adhere to and that this situation won't be going away.
"The consumer is using their ability to share their voice online about businesses they feel are unsafe," Rhea said. "I think that kind of pressure is really in the end is what’s going to get businesses in line.”
RELATED: Inside the numbers: 53% of San Joaquin County's coronavirus cases were reported in last two weeks
According to Rhea, some businesses that were allowed to open might have played "fast and loose" with the guidelines and didn't enforce their team members to adhere to the guidance.
San Joaquin County saw large gains in the amount coronavirus cases in recent weeks. Dr. Maggie Park, San Joaquin County health officer, told ABC10 most of those tied back to gatherings.
She also said that, when the county and state reopened, people expected numbers to go up due to the amount interactions increasing, but, San Joaquin County didn't handle the reopening well.
“What I really want to tell the public is, I don’t think this (case increases) would have happened if everyone had been following the rules, honestly," Park told ABC10. "There are so many people out there who have been doing their best to really keep us on that flattened curve and I commend them."
The businesses taking the healthy pledge are ones Rhea hopes will "put their money where their mouth is."
To that end, Visit Stockton has helped the people taking their pledge by providing guidance and resources. They've given out masks to businesses, provided a pledge seal that they can add to their door, promoted their pledged businesses, and they even have educational opportunities on the horizon.
“I want people to come to our city and feel like we take this a little more seriously, and they should feel safe while visiting and spending their dollars here,” said Rhea.
That feeling of safety is why Byrd and her dojo are waiting for the right time to bring back sparring. She said there will come a time to apply those techniques, but that time is not now.
“I don’t think it’s worth risking my students, my students families, (or) my family for some contact right now,” Byrd said.
Those steps make her students and student families feel safer, and Byrd said she hasn't gotten any complaints about the protocols. The Stockton Healthy Pledge seal shares that safety commitment in a visible way.
“I do think its kind of handy to let people know that you’re making a commitment to be safe," Byrd said. "They appreciate that, as long as your doing it authentically and you’re not using it as a mask.”
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