San Francisco's New Phase of Reopening Begins

Thousands of struggling San Francisco businesses were set to reopen Monday for limited indoor operations. 

Several businesses thought to still be weeks or months away from reopening are now inviting customers back indoors, including hair and nail salons, barbershops, gyms, massage studios, and hotels. Indoor capacity is limited, and strict mask and distancing requirements will be enforced. 

Outdoor family entertainment including mini-golf, batting cages, and go-carts also were allowed to reopen in the city Monday.

Churches are now allowed to reopen for individual prayer.

For weeks San Francisco gyms, barbers and hair and nail salons have blasted the city for refusing to allow them to restart indoor operations, saying that between the bad air and sanitation concerns, working outdoors was nearly impossible.

The owner of San Francisco Color Collective just hours after Thursday’s announcement said she says this isn’t the magic bullet, but it’s at least a critical step in the right direction.

“Our business will definitely recover. However, at a much less capacity, we’re definitely suffering in the sense that we won’t be able to service as many clients and as many stylists won’t be able to work,” said Jessica Sclamberg. “I have read all the guidelines of other counties that have opened so as a salon owner, we’ve been preparing for this day. We are totally ready. So we’re very excited that we got the guidelines, that were ready, and that we can open.”

There was also big news for parents, teachers and students.

Elementary schools with approved safety plans can start reopening September 21, so can indoor museums, zoos, and aquariums.

A full breakdown below:

San Francisco’s Path Forward to Reopening

Monday, Sept. 14 – Low Risk Outdoor and Indoor Activities

• Indoor personal services, such as hair salons, barber shops, nail salons, massage services, tattoo and piercing, with limited capacity
• Indoor gyms, including one-on-one personal training, at limited capacity
• Hotels and other lodging, including short-term rentals
• Places of worship and political activities (one person at a time indoors for individual prayer or campaign office use; up to 50 people outdoors)
• Outdoor tour buses and open-air boats, with limited capacity
• Drive-in movies, with limited capacity
• Outdoor family entertainment, such as mini-golf, batting cages, and go-carts, with limited capacity, (but not amusement park rides and playgrounds at this time)

Sept. 21 – Indoor Museums, Zoos, and Aquariums and TK-6th grade in-person learning

• Indoor museums, zoos, and aquariums at a limited capacity and with a submitted health and safety plan
• In-classroom learning: TK-6th grade on rolling basis with approved health and safety plan

GOAL: End of September, Low Risk Indoor Activities

• Places of worship, with limited capacity (25% of capacity indoors, up to 25 people; up to 50 people outdoors)

GOAL: October, Middle School in-person learning

• Middle schools, in-person learning, on rolling basis with an approved health and safety plan

GOAL: November, High Schools, additional learning activities

• High schools, in-person learning, on rolling basis with an approved health and safety plan

Source: NBC Bay Area