Marin County businesses look to cash in on July 4th celebrations

Celebrating the Fourth of July is expected to create some headaches for North Bay residents, with the closure of the Golden Gate Bridge. But some cities and businesses are hoping to cash in on the closure and are preparing for more people to join local celebrations.

Copita, a quaint restaurant on Bridgeway, has been here for the last 13 years.

"Copita is a small little restaurant," General Manager Daisy Diaz said. "Copita, we offer tequila, mezcal, food. All authentic Mexican food. Our most popular dish is mole enchiladas."

Every year, they look forward to the Fourth of July.

"Right now, we're making sure we have enough mix for our margaritas," Diaz said. "We do about 13 gallons, just for Fourth of July weekend."

With a larger-than-usual crowd expected this weekend, Copita is bringing in extra staff. They already know it's going to be a long day.

"I'm going to get here at 9 a.m. just to prepare and I'm probably going to be here until 2 a.m.," Diaz said. "So, I'm going to be here for a long time, but I'm excited."

Sausalito usually gets a couple of hundred people to join in on its July Fourth festivities. This year, with the Golden Gate Bridge closure for San Francisco's grand fireworks display, the city is expecting that number to be closer to a thousand.

"We are anticipating quite a few more folks here in Sausalito to celebrate with us and we welcome that," Sausalito Vice Mayor Melissa Saxe Blaustein said. "We have been working very closely Sausalito PD, with Caltrans, with CHP to ensure that we have full safety on the roads that were prepared for the closures. We're ready and excited to welcome everybody who wants to come celebrate in the North Bay."

Sausalito could be the prime location to watch both fireworks shows and help North Bay residents avoid a potential traffic nightmare. The Golden Gate National Recreation Area is also expecting a good crowd to watch the show from the Marin Headlands. The hope is that the weather will cooperate so people can see the fireworks light up the sky.

"It's an incredibly special celebration for us here in Sausalito, and across the entire country," Vice Mayor Saxe Blaustein said. "I think that America's birthday is something that really transcends politics and it really reminds us how lucky we are to be Americans. It gives us an opportunity to be patriotic together."

As people celebrate together, Copita is hoping to take advantage of all the people visiting Sausalito this weekend. It's extending its hours and will be open until midnight on Saturday. Copita may be getting the best birthday gift this year with a big boost in business.

"It's probably going to be 10 times more, trust me," Diaz said. "We get a line most of the time for Fourth of July. So, it's exciting."