Los Angeles County supervisors on Tuesday voted in favor of the Assembly 420 Bill, which seeks to have theme parks reopened earlier than currently planned. With this bill, larger theme parks such as Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure, as well as Universal Studios Hollywood, could reopen in Tier 3 of Governor Gavin Newsom’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy.
Currently, theme parks with a capacity of more than 15,000 guests are in level 4 of the governor’s plan, which is not expected to be reached until late 2021. The bill would amend state guidelines to allow larger theme parks to open once a region is in the moderate orange risk level rather than the lower yellow level.
The Anaheim City Council also voted 6-1 in favor of approving this bill. With the bill, larger theme parks such as Disneyland can be opened with a 25% level in Tier 3.
Supervisor Kathryn Barger wrote a letter in support of the bill.
“With complete outdoor activities and the ability to maintain physical distance, theme parks across the country have proven that they can reopen safely. Large theme parks reopened nationwide last summer and there are no outbreaks or distributions of these institutions yet. ”
Barger further said that it would be difficult for a densely populated area like Los Angeles County to meet the requirements to be in the minimum risk level, but that the amusement park operations are safe after reopening. As it stands now, larger theme parks are in Tier 4 and would not be able to reopen until there is less than one daily case of COVID-19 per 100,000 residents and a test positivity rate of less than 2% is in Los Angeles County.
Disneyland officials have not yet made a statement on the approval of the Assembly 420 Bill or for any possible reopening dates for the Disneyland resort. Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure have been closed since March 2020.
As Disney’s California Adventure reopens in a limited way for a brand new ticket experience in March, and parts of Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa reopen in May, we may be on our way to a full reopening much sooner than we expect has.
Check back here at WDWNT for more updates on the phased reopening of the Disneyland resort.
Source: Yahoo! News