Businesses could start applying for Boulder County’s new 5 Star Certification Program as early as next week.
The program — which will allow certified businesses to operate at a less-restrictive capacity than outlined by the state’s color-coded COVID dial dashboard — this week earned Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment approval.
Information on how to apply for the program will be posted online Tuesday. Applications are expected to be accepted starting Feb. 5, with inspections beginning the week of Feb. 8, according to a joint news release from the Longmont Economic Development Partnership and the Boulder Chamber.
The program is good news for businesses that have been battered by the coronavirus pandemic and ensuing restrictions on capacity and services. Certification under the program will, in most instances, allow them to double their capacity.
Boulder County currently is in orange status on the state’s COVID dial, which limits restaurants, gyms and fitness centers, personal services businesses, offices, indoor and outdoor event venues and non-critical manufacturers to 25% of capacity. In contrast, under yellow level restrictions, they could operate at 50% capacity.
Operating at the yellow level also would allow restaurants to move last call for alcohol to 11 p.m. instead of 10 p.m. as mandated by the county’s orange status. Bars, however, will be required to remain closed.
Capacity limits for retailers would remain at 50% in the yellow status.
"I think it's a great opportunity to be able to serve more customers and to help reactivate the economy, following the appropriate protocols determined by public health and doing what we can to keep our communities safe and our businesses open," said Haydee Caraveo Vazquez, owner Oasis Fresh Fruit.
Todd Eichorn, owner of La Vita Bella Cafe, said he’s not quite ready to apply for the program. People, he said, don’t seem to be going out as often as they did pre-pandemic, so he’s not sure if any added expense or effort is warranted just yet for his restaurant that offers fast-casual fare during the day and farm-to-table white linen dining in the evenings.
“We’re noticing people are still very fearful right now,” he said.
If traffic picks up, Eichorn has the benefit of having more than 3,000 square feet of space in two interior rooms and heaters out front for outdoor dining. But if it picks up enough that he finds the restaurant bumping up against capacity limits, he said he might consider applying.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment created the COVID-19 5 Star State Certification program on Dec. 14. It allows counties to develop local certification programs in which businesses implement safety measures beyond those required by public health orders.
Boulder County’s 5 Star program was created through a partnership between the Longmont Economic Development Partnership and the Boulder Chamber. The administrative committee responsible for its oversight includes economic development leaders; municipal, county and public health staff; elected officials, and hospital executives. Its application was submitted to the state on Jan. 20.
The state program requires a two-week sustained decline in cases, a positivity percentage lower than 10% or demonstrably improving over the past two weeks, fewer than 90% of ICU beds in use, and steady or declining regional hospitalizations, according to Boulder County Public Health.
Those metrics will be reviewed twice a week to ensure the program’s ability to operate in the county, according to the news release.
To qualify for the program, businesses must demonstrate they have implemented all required public health measures to help protect customers and staff from contracting COVID-19 and be inspected by 5 Star program staff, according to the release.
Boulder County’s 5 Star program will be administered by a third-party vendor, Longmont-based H2 Manufacturing Solutions, according to a Jan. 20 news release. As part of the program, H2 will provide ongoing oversight and auditing of inspectors. The program will use a “train the trainer” model and will seek approximately 75 volunteers from across the county to serve as trained auditors and administrators for the program.
“This proposed third-party vendor solution leverages a safety certification system developed by H2 and the COVID-19 Manufacturing Task Force that first convened in March and included members from Boulder County Public Health and Longmont Economic Development Partnership,” the Jan. 20 release states.
More information on how to prepare for the application and how to apply will be available Tuesday at Boulder County’s 5 Star Certification Program website — http://bit.ly/BOCO5STAR. The website is available in English and Spanish and will provide instructional videos, sample inspection checklists and resources for businesses interested in applying for the program.
A technical assistance webinar for businesses to learn about the process and ask questions will be at 11 a.m. Feb. 5 at http://bit.ly/5StarInfoSession.
Questions and comments about the program can be sent to [email protected].
— Staff writer Silvia Romero Solis contributed to this report.
