New COVID-19 Vaccine Super Site Opens As OC Moves Into State's Orange Tier
COSTA MESA (CBSLA) — On the same day Orange County officially moved into the state's less-restrictive orange tier, a new vaccine super site opened at the fairgrounds in Costa Mesa.
"I'm just going to feel so much better that I have the first vaccination and look forward to the second," Sandy Pickens, a Newport Beach resident, said.
The OC Fair and Event Center vaccination site will operate seven days per week until the 3.2 million people who call Orange County home are fully vaccinated.
"All sorts of events are held here at the fairgrounds, so opening it up for a good cause to get everybody vaccinated, I think it's a great thing," Mark Dunivent, a Costa Mesa resident, said.
The goal, according to O.C. Supervisor Katrina Foley, is to get every resident fully vaccinated by July 1.
"That's our goal, July 1," she said. "And, hopefully, we get there sooner."
But Wednesday also marked the day businesses like Golden Road Brewing in Anaheim can start serving twice as many customers indoors.
"It does allow us to seat up to 100 people on the inside of the building, versus 50, and then we still have all of the outdoor capacity for all of the guests and fans coming to see the Angels play," Sara O'Shea, the brewpub's general manager, said.
And the timing, she said, couldn't be better with restrictions loosening on the eve of the return of Major League Baseball since Golden Road Brewing is across the street from Angel Stadium.
It's also great news for Angels fans, who will be allowed to attend games in bigger numbers. According to the Angels, about 5,000 more spectators will be able to buy tickets for Thursday night's home opener and for games over the weekend due to the increased capacity limits.
"It just makes everyone really happy to just kind of get back to normal life, in a sense," Ashley Monroy, an Angels fan, said. "You know, get back to things that we love to do."
