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By Rebecca Jefferis Williamson
(Photos by Rebecca Jefferis Williamson)
(Photo at left - Walmart at Lemon Grove's College Grove Center)
May 31, 2020 (San Diego’s East County) -- The “We are open” and “reopened” signs announcing businesses were open after COVID-19 closures were nowhere in sight for some establishments across the East County late this afternoon. Stores closed early, in part due to curfews, or closed for the day in preparation for potential destructive actions by rioters and looters following protests of George Floyd’s death by police officers in Minneapolis.
Walmart Stores at College Grove Center, Santee, and at Parkway Plaza were closed late this afternoon. The College Grove Center location was in the process of boarding up and setting up barricades to lessen the chance of protesters breaking in. Sam's Club was closed for an unspecified time.
The Santee Walmart had red mulch bags stacked up in rows covering the main entry way. According to staff on site they will reopen at 8 a.m. on June 1.
Some La Mesa store fronts near the La Mesa Police Department, where protests turned violent, were boarded up.
Window fronts with glass were replaced with plywood and barricades of various materials in front of entries were common sights on May 31 around east county.
(Photo at right: Santee Walmart)
Security, doing 12-hour shifts, was beefed up at the strip shopping center where Ross, Michaels Craft Store, and a variety of other stores do business in Santee.
(Photo at left: Target at College Grove Center.)
Peaceful protests were held in cities like Santee and Poway during the day. The nighttime protests can be a different scenario and of concern to many.
(Photo at right - a peaceful protest in Santee)
At Grossmont Center, K-rails have been set up to block mall entrances to vehicle traffic tonight.
Police cars are being used to block off streets or on-off highway ramps. When driving around expect detours.
Business owners are boarding up their store fronts themselves or using companies that provide board-up-services such as the one below.
(Exclusive---photo at left - looting at Walmart's Grossmont Center location on May 30)
Call businesses ahead of time, that had recently reopened after stage 3 COVID-19 closures, to see if they have modified hours due to the protests or have closed.
Rebecca Jefferis Williamson Is an award-winning freelance journalist and photographer who has covered a wide-variety of subjects ranging from civil protests, community news and features to health issues including Covid-19, PFAS toxins, and Newcastle disease. Besides being a part of the East County Magazine team, she has freelanced for the San Diego Community Newspaper Group, Local Web Media, the Chula Vista Star News, San Diego Family Magazine, Military Press, and a number of other newspapers.
East County Magazine thanks the Facebook Journalism Project for support through its COVID-19 Local News Relief Fund Grant Program to help sustain reporting on vulnerable local populations and rural communities. Learn more at #FacebookJournalismProject.
You can donate to support our local journalism efforts during the pandemic at https://www.EastCountyMedia.org/donate.
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