Confirmed: Red Tier Effective Sunday, March 14

As a result of the state administering 2 million vaccine doses to its hardest-hit communities, the Blueprint for a Safer Economy's minimum case rates have been adjusted. Due to this adjustment, Sonoma County has been moved from the widespread/purple tier to the substantial/red tier effective Sunday, March 14. Read the County of Sonoma's full press release here.
Moving from the purple tier into the red tier means:
- Restaurants are allowed to open indoors with 25 percent capacity or a maximum of 100 people, whichever is fewer.
- Retail establishments are allowed to open indoors at 50 percent capacity.
- Movie theaters are allowed to open indoors with 25 percent capacity or 100 people, whichever is fewer.
- Gyms are allowed to open indoors with 10 percent capacity.
- Museums, zoos, and aquariums can open indoor activities at 25 percent capacity.
- Breweries, wineries and distilleries that do not serve meals may open outdoors only with modifications. The modifications include ensuring that patrons have reservations and patrons observe a 90-minute time limit. Service for on-site consumption must end by 8 p.m.
- Bars that do not serve meals remain closed in the Purple (widespread) and Red (substantial) tiers.
The CDPH has released a guide outlining the current activity and business tiers here.
For businesses permitted to modify operations as a result of the tier change, an update is required to the Appendix A Safety Plan to reflect modifications. View full Appendix A requirements at SoCoLaunch.org.
Further metric adjustments for reopening are tied to the state administering 4 million doses to residents in the lowest quartile on the Healthy Places Index. When that threshold has been met, a case rate of 6 or less per 100,000 qualifies counties to move from the red to the orange tier.
While moving to the red tier is positive news, it remains vital that we continue to adhere to state-mandated health orders regarding mask wearing and social distancing and encourage routine testing to control the spread of the virus, to prevent Sonoma County from slipping back to the widespread/purple tier, and to further the reopening of Sonoma County businesses and our economy.