Daily Republic: Wednesday, April 28, 2021 by mcnaughtonmedia

California ranks 4th among states with high fire risk A3

wednesday | April 28, 2021 | $1.00

dailyrepublic.com | Well said. Well read.

Board denies ‘tourist home’ permit in Green Valley

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covid-19 pandemic

Sets moratorium in rural residential areas Todd R. Hansen

thansen@dailyrepublic.net

FAIRFIELD — The Solano County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday denied an application for a short-term vacation rental use permit in the Green Valley Highlands, then set a temporary moratorium on any new permits in rural residential zones. One of the issues is unhosted versus hosted rentals – an issue that helped Supervisor Erin Hannigan vote to deny the application by Gerald Heyman and Amanda Rothstein at 4376 Edinburg Court. Hannigan said she would never support an unhosted rental in a residential area. The board denial came on a 4-1 vote. Supervisor Jim Spering described his vote as a “reluctant no.” The moratorium buys the hannigan county time to come up with a new short-term rental vacation ordinance that specifically addresses the rural residential concerns. Tourist homes have been a contentious issue in the county, and specifically in residential areas. The supervisors approved an ordinance in 2018 that mashburn permitted the rental homes virtually anywhere in the unincorporated area, but it required a use permit. One of the primary motivations was to support agritourism, and specifically in the Suisun Valley. Since adopting that ordinance, only four properties have spering received permits, while county officials readily admit there are many others that are operating illegally without a permit. The Green Valley Highlands property was one of those that first opened as a tourist home without a permit. Complaints from the neighbors, ranging from noise to fire risk, put a spotlight on that property. So the property owners applied for the permit and first went to the Solano County Planning Commission for approval. That panel, with only four members at the time, twice deadlocked on a 2-2 vote, which took the matter to the Board of Supervisors. Heyman argued before the supervisors that he and his wife have done everything asked of them by the county planning staff to come into compliance. He said to deny it would only encourage others to operate without a permit. The staff recommended approval of the permit. The public hearing drew a great number of written and verbal comments on both sides, and at times those comments became controversial in their own right. Heyman suggested that one of the possible reasons his neighbors opposed their tourist home was because he had rented to people of color.

Aaron Rosenblatt/Daily Republic

A pedestrian wearing a face mask walks near the Government Center in downtown Fairfield, Tuesday.

Solano numbers look promising, again hospitalizations, too County announces vaccination clinics Daily Republic Staff

drnews@dailyrepublic.net

FAIRFIELD — The Solano County Public Health Division, in pa r t ner sh ip w it h Kaiser Permanente, NorthBay Healthcare, Partnership Healthplan California, Touro University California, Medic Ambulance and several other local agencies, has announced a series of upcoming Covid-19 vaccination clinics. Anyone 16 or 17 can only receive the PfizerBioNTech vaccine and must be accompanied by a parent or guardian to the appointment, or have a parent/guardian who can be contacted by phone during the appointment. Walk-ins will be accepted, but appointments are preferred. For help making appointments, call 7848655. For a full list of vaccine clinics, visit See Clinics, Page A10

See Permit, Page A10

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Todd R. Hansen

thansen@dailyrepublic.net

FAIRFIELD — The roller coaster that has been the Solano County coronavirus case reporting is back on the thrill of a downward slide. The Public Health Division reported 32 new cases Tuesday. It was the first day since April 20 when the number was below 35. The month has had an average of about 41 cases per day. That compares to March when the daily average was just under 37. The new reports put the total number of cases for the pandemic at 32,345. Dr. Bela Matyas, the county public health officer, said it was also encouraging to see hospitalizations drop back to the more “reasonable” level of 20 individuals. He also noted that the county is now 81.7% toward its goal of vaccinating 225,000 individuals – or about two-thirds of the county’s adult popula-

See Numbers, Page A10

CDC: Fully vaccinated people do not need masks for most outdoor activities Tribune Content Agency Get the vax and drop the mask. Fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear face masks outdoors unless they’re in large crowds with strangers, according to new public health guidance rolled out Tuesday by the Biden administration and quickly adopted by most states, including New York. President Joe Biden said the relaxed guidance reflects the “stunning” success of his administration’s camWEATHER 86 | 51 Sunny. Five-day forecast on B10. YOUR LUXURY VINYL PLANK & TILE EXPERT

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tion 16 or older. The county reported Tuesday it had vaccinated 183,877 residents with a single dose, and 121,199 with two doses. That represents 54% and 36% of the adult population, respectively. There were no new Covid-related deaths reported, and the seven-day positivity testing rate was 5.5%, the county reported. Active cases appeared to take a dramatic jump from 214 to 330, but Matyas said the 214 figure was a misprint and should have been 314 Monday. Vacaville had the most new cases with 10, taking its total to 8,444. Vallejo added nine cases for a count of 9,630. Fairfield is at 8,790 after six new cases, the county reported. Suisun City (2,210) added one case; Dixon (1,853) added four; and Benicia (950) added two. There were no new reports in Rio Vista (366) or in the

paign to vaccinate the U.S. out of the coronavirus pandemic. He also touted the new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines as prime incentive for those still on the fence about getting vaccinated. “This is another great reason to go get vaccinated – now, now,” Biden said in a speech on the White House North Lawn, envisioning Americans enjoying mask-free picnics and park gatherings

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