[00:00:02]
HELLO AND WELCOME TO THE BUSINESS MEETING FOR THE AMARILLO CITY COUNCIL THIS WEEK.
HERE TO START US OFF TODAY WITH AN INVOCATION IS REVEREND STEVE MARTIN.
[INVOCATION]
REVEREND MARTIN. ALL RIGHT.LET'S PRAY. DEAR LORD, WE COME NOW BEFORE YOUR GREATEST GLORY.
WE AND THE LORD COME BEFORE YOU WORSHIPING YOU AND THE BEAUTY OF YOUR HOLINESS.
WE WORSHIP YOU IN SPIRIT AND TRUTH, ALL IN THE NAME OF JESUS.
FATHER, WE COME, LORD, BEFORE YOUR THRONE OF GRACE ASKING, LORD, IF YOU'D HAVE MERCY ON US. PLEASE FORGIVE US FOR ALL OF OUR MANY SINS.
AND ALSO FATHER, WE COME NOW BEFORE YOU PRAYING THAT YOU WILL BLESS THIS MEETING FOR THE CITY. WE PRAY, LORD GOD, FOR THE LEADERSHIP OF THIS CITY.
WE PRAY, LORD, FOR YOUR WISDOM, YOUR GUIDANCE AND YOUR UNDERSTANDING THAT YOU WILL INDEED LEAD IN SUCH A WAY WHERE YOU ARE HONORED AND GLORIFIED AND ALL ARE BLESSED AND PROTECTED BY YOU. PRAY, FATHER, FOR THE PANDEMIC, EVERYTHING THAT'S TAKEN PLACE.
WE PRAY LORD, FOR YOUR PROTECTION, FOR YOUR HEALING, AND THAT YOU CONTINUE TO BLESS THIS PLACE. IT IS IN JESUS NAME THAT WE PRAY.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BLESSING US WITH THAT.
ALL RIGHT, BLESS YOU. AND FOR BEING HERE WITH US TODAY, TOO.
WE HAVE A SHORT WORK SESSION AGENDA TODAY.
IT'S ONE ITEM, BUT THIS ITEM CONTINUES TO PROVE TO US THAT DOESN'T NECESSARILY MAKE FOR A SHORT MEETING, DOES IT? SO WE'LL SEE HOW WE GO TODAY.
[A. Coronavirus Update; and]
AGENDA ITEM 1 A IS THE CORONAVIRUS UPDATE.SO I'M GOING TO START OFF BY HANDING IT OFF TO THE CITY MANAGER.
I BELIEVE WE HAVE CASIE STOUGHTON ON THE CALL.
MELTON WITH US OR NO? I DON'T THINK SO.
I'M GOING TO GO AND HAND IT TO CASIE--FIRST I'M GOING TO HAND IT TO CASIE.
THEN I'M GOING TO GIVE A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE GOVERNOR'S NEW EXECUTIVE ORDER GA TWENTY THREE. I'LL TRY AND MAKE IT BRIEF, BUT IT IS SOMEWHAT CONVOLUTED.
CONVOLUTED IS THE WRONG WORD IS IT TAKES A LITTLE BIT OF EXPLAINING.
THIS HAS NUMEROUS TRIGGER DATES AND NUMEROUS THINGS THEY'RE GOING TO OPEN UP, REOPEN AT DIFFERENT DATES. AND THEN WITH A HANDFUL OF COUNTIES, INCLUDING POTTER AND RANDALL COUNTIES, IT'S GOING TO HAVE A DELAYED OPENING ON SOMETHING.
SO I'LL GO OVER THAT PROCESS AFTER CASIE GIVES THE PUBLIC HEALTH UPDATE AND THEN WE'LL TAKE ANY QUESTIONS.
OR YOU KNOW, WE'LL TAKE QUESTIONS AS CASIE GOES AND AS I GO AND THEN WE'LL ADDRESS ANY OTHER QUESTIONS COUNCIL HAS ON COVID.
IF THERE ARE QUESTIONS ALONG THE WAY, PLEASE FEEL FREE AND STOP ME.
HAPPY TO HAVE THIS INTERACTIVE AND WORK THROUGH THOSE THINGS AS WE MOVE THROUGH.
SO AS OF TODAY AT NOON, THERE WERE A TOTAL OF TWO THOUSAND EIGHT HUNDRED AND NINE CASES OF COVID-19 REPORTED IN POTTER AND RANDALL COUNTIES, TWO THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED NINETY THREE IN POTTER COUNTY, SIX HUNDRED AND SIXTEEN IN RANDALL COUNTY.
WE HAVE A TOTAL OF FIVE HUNDRED AND SIX RECOVERIES AND THERE ARE A TOTAL OF TWENTY NINE DEATHS REPORTED IN POTTER AND RANDALL COUNTIES.
THAT LEAVES US WITH TWO THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED AND SEVENTY FOUR ACTIVE CASES.
THIS INFORMATION INCLUDES TESTING THAT IS PERFORMED AT TYSON.
SO FAR THERE ARE AROUND FIFTEEN HUNDRED EMPLOYEES WHO HAVE TESTED POSITIVE FOR COVID-19 AT TYSON. THIS INCLUDES TESTING SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE AMARILLO PUBLIC HEALTH DRIVE THROUGH AND TESTING THAT WAS PERFORMED BY THE TEXAS NATIONAL GUARD.
ALMOST TWO WEEKS NOW AGO AT THE TYSON PLANT.
A FAIR NUMBER OF PEOPLE LIVE IN COUNTIES OTHER THAN POTTER AND RANDALL, AND THEREFORE WON'T BE INCLUDED IN THE OVERALL NUMBERS ON THE AMARILLO AREA REPORT CARD.
BUT THOSE NUMBERS, THOSE PEOPLE WHO RESIDE IN OTHER COUNTIES, THOSE CASES ARE REFLECTED IN THE OVERALL NUMBERS FOR THEIR COUNTIES AND ARE REFLECTED IN THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES NUMBERS ON THE WEB SITE THERE.
WE HAVE BEEN ASKED HOW MANY OF THE CASES THERE ARE ASYMPTOMATIC PUBLIC HEALTH AT THE DRIVE THRU DOES NOT TEST ANYONE GENERALLY WHO IS ASYMPTOMATIC.
THE TEXAS NATIONAL GUARD, HOWEVER, DID TEST ALL EMPLOYEES AT TYSON, INCLUDING ASYMPTOMATIC EMPLOYEES.
WE WEREN'T GIVEN THE NUMBER OF ASYMPTOMATIC EMPLOYEES THAT WERE TESTED, SO WE DON'T HAVE THE INFORMATION.
WE ARE CONDUCTING CONTACT INVESTIGATIONS FOR EACH EMPLOYEE.
AND AS WE HAVE THE DATA, WE'RE HAPPY TO MAKE THAT DATA AVAILABLE.
BUT IT WILL TAKE QUITE A BIT OF TIME TO GATHER AND TABULATE THE INFORMATION.
LOOKING AT HOSPITAL CAPACITY, AS OF YESTERDAY, THERE WERE A TOTAL OF 66 COVID PATIENTS IN BOTH OF OUR HOSPITALS FOR A HOSPITALIZATION RATE OF TWO POINT NINE PERCENT.
[00:05:02]
WITH THE SHARP INCREASE IN CASES LAST WEEK AND A SLIGHT DECREASE IN THE NUMBER OF HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS, THE PERCENTAGE OF HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS LOOKS BETTER THIS WEEK.BUT YOU KNOW, IT'S KIND OF AN EBB AND FLOW EACH WEEK AND EACH DAY.
TOTAL HOSPITAL CAPACITY IS AROUND HALF CAPACITY.
ICU SPACE IS AT AROUND 65 PERCENT AND VENTILATOR USE IS AROUND 40 PERCENT.
AMARILLO, PUBLIC HEALTH AND THE AMARILLO FIRE DEPARTMENT ARE WORKING TOGETHER WITH THE AMARILLO AND POTTER RANDALL NURSING FACILITIES TO COMPLY WITH THE GOVERNOR'S ORDER TO TEST ALL STAFF AND RESIDENTS OF NURSING HOMES.
ONCE THOSE RESULTS BEGIN TO COME IN, WE DO ANTICIPATE ANOTHER INCREASE IN RESULTS JUST DUE TO TESTING A LARGE NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS.
AND THAT'S REALLY ALL I HAVE, I WANTED TO MOVE THROUGH THOSE PIECES SO THAT WE COULD ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE.
SO, CASIE, IN LOOKING AT THE REPORT, IT SEEMS LIKE WE'RE BEGINNING TO LEVEL OFF A LITTLE BIT. IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE SEEING, AS FAR AS BOTH COUNTIES ARE CONCERNED? YES, MA'AM, THE NUMBER OF NET ACTIVE CASES HAS STAYED FAIRLY CONSISTENT TODAY.
SO WE WENT AHEAD AND READ THE REPORT CARD OUT OR JUST SO THAT WE COULD TALK ABOUT THAT INFORMATION TODAY.
SO ON TUESDAYS, WE'RE TRYING TO GET FIRST IN DUE TO THE TIMING OF CITY COUNCIL.
SO I HAVE A TEAM HERE WHO DOES THOSE NUMBERS EVERY DAY.
SO I APPRECIATE THEIR HARD WORK TO MAKE SURE WE PUT THAT INFORMATION OUT EARLY ON TUESDAYS. AND SO, YES.
SO THERE WERE A TOTAL OF 32 NEW CASES FOR POTTER COUNTY.
AND YOU'RE AT NET NEGATIVE ONE FOR RANDALL COUNTY.
OK. THANK YOU FOR POINTING THAT OUT, BECAUSE I APPRECIATED HAVING THE REPORT EARLY TODAY SO I COULD LOOK AT IT AHEAD OF TIME.
AND I APPRECIATE YOUR STAFF DOING IT.
AGAIN, WE AS A COUNCIL, WE KNOW THAT A LOT OF WORK ON YOUR PART, SO THANK YOU.
ABSOLUTELY. THEY'VE TRIED TO--SO THEY'RE THEY'RE CUT OFF IS A LITTLE LATER MOST DAYS, BUT ON COUNCIL [INAUDIBLE] CUT-OFF IS AROUND 11:00 SO THAT WE CAN MAKE SURE AND HAVE THAT INFORMATION TABULATED.
CASIE, YOU SAID THE NUMBER OF POSITIVE TESTS THAT HAD COME OUT OF TYSON WERE FIFTEEN HUNDRED. REMIND ME OUT OF A TOTAL.
HOW MANY TOTAL TESTS WERE DONE OUT AT TYSON? SO, THAT'S AN EASY QUESTION.
AND IT COULD BE AN EASY ANSWER, SIR.
SO, SORRY THAT I'M GOING TO GIVE YOU NO NECESSARILY AN EASY ANSWER.
SO THE TEXAS NATIONAL GUARD TESTED THREE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY SEVEN PEOPLE.
THE DENOMINATOR OR THE TOTAL TESTS THAT HAVE BEEN PROVIDED BY AMARILLO PUBLIC HEALTH, I DON'T HAVE AN EXACT NUMBER OF TOTAL TESTS DONE THERE, JUST THE POSITIVE TESTS.
I MEAN, JUST THE OVERALL NUMBER.
BUT I MEAN, JUST FOR THAT POPULATION SPECIFICALLY, I DO HAVE AN OVERALL TOTAL NUMBER OF TESTS THAT WERE PROVIDED AT THE DRIVE THRU TESTING CENTER.
BUT FOR THAT POPULATION OF EMPLOYEES, IT WOULD TAKE SOME TIME TO GENERATE THAT NUMBER WITH ALL THE NEGATIVES AND EVERYTHING.
IT'S A MORE DIFFICULT NUMBER TO COME TO.
AND SO IF I'M FOLLOWING IT RIGHT, WHAT YOU'RE SAYING IS THAT SOME OF THOSE EMPLOYEES GOT TESTED OTHER PLACES.
YES. SO THEY WERE TESTED AT THE DRIVE THRU, SOME WERE TESTED AT THE HOSPITALS, SOME WERE TESTED AT THEIR PRIVATE PHYSICIAN'S OFFICES.
INFORMATION IS COMING IN LOTS OF DIFFERENT WAYS.
BUT THERE WERE JUST OVER THIRTY FIVE HUNDRED WHO WERE TESTED AT THE PLANT ITSELF.
I WAS JUST GOING TO SAY THERE ARE THREE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED EIGHTY SEVEN THAT WERE TESTED AT THE PLANT AND BY THE TEXAS MILITARY FORCES.
CAN'T SAY THAT THEY'RE ALL ASYMPTOMATIC.
THEY JUST HAD NOT REQUESTED A TEST OR DEMONSTRATED SYMPTOMS OR ASKED FOR A TEST.
BUT PRIOR TO THAT, THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT HAD BEEN TESTED AND EITHER HAD POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE RESULTS.
SO THAT THREE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED EIGHTY SEVEN IS JUST THE ONES DONE BY TEXAS MILITARY FORCES, BOTH AT THE FAIRGROUNDS AND AT THE SITE.
THEN THERE WERE ALSO, CASIE, HUNDREDS.
I DON'T KNOW THE EXACT NUMBER THAT WERE DONE PRIOR TO THAT BY US AND BY OTHERS.
THANK YOU FOR THAT CLARIFICATION.
THAT AT ALL WASN'T DONE AT ONE TIME, BUT ROUGHLY THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES AT THAT ONE SITE
[00:10:06]
IS AROUND FOUR THOUSAND? PROBABLY. SO THEY HAVE...THERE'S LOTS OF CONTRACTORS.THERE'S LOTS OF DIFFERENT VARIABLES, SO I THINK IT'S PROBABLY SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 40, CLOSER TO MAYBE 40 TO 4400.
OK. I GOT A TOTAL PLANT POPULATION, CASIE OF RIGHT AT FORTY EIGHT HUNDRED.
BUT THAT INCLUDES CONTRACTORS.
YES. GREAT. AND WE APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT TYSON HAS DONE.
I APPRECIATE THAT THEY WERE THE FIRST PLANT IN THE AREA TO TEST THEIR EMPLOYEES.
A LOT OF COURAGE. SO I REALLY APPRECIATE THEIR PARTNERSHIP AND WORKING WITH US AND DOING THAT. SO THEY'VE BEEN VERY OPEN WITH US.
AND SO I REALLY APPRECIATE THEM DOING THAT.
SO, CASIE, DO WE HAVE LIKE THE ETHNICITY BREAKDOWN IN THE COMMUNITY FOR HOW MANY INDIVIDUALS HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN TESTED POSITIVE FOR COVID? I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE NUMBERS OR MAYBE PERCENTAGES THAT YOU COULD PROBABLY SHARE WITH US. YES, MA'AM.
SO I HAVE--FOR THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE TESTED POSITIVE IN OUR COMMUNITY, IN THE ASIAN POPULATION, FIFTEEN POINT TWO PERCENT OF THE POSITIVE TEST RESULTS WERE IN THE ASIAN POPULATION, FOUR POINT SEVEN PERCENT.THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN POPULATION, THIRTEEN POINT ONE PERCENT CAUCASIAN, TWENTY FIVE POINT FOUR PERCENT HISPANIC.
AND FORTY ONE POINT FIVE PERCENT IS UNDER ACTIVE INVESTIGATION.
BECAUSE MANY OF THE TEST RESULTS.
WELL, ALL OF THE TEST RESULTS THAT WE GOT BACK FROM THE TEXAS MILITARY FORCE DID NOT HAVE RACE OR ETHNICITY ON THERE.
AND THEN SO AS WE'RE CALLING THOSE INDIVIDUALS, WE'RE ASKING THAT INFORMATION AND THEN POPULATING OUR DATA.
AND AND THEN SOMETIMES WE GET OTHER TEST RESULTS.
SO WE'RE ACTIVELY SEARCHING FOR THAT INFORMATION.
WHEN WE TELL PEOPLE AND WE'RE FILLING THAT IN ON THE BACK SIDE OF DATA COLLECTION.
SO THERE IS JUST UNDER HALF OF OUR DATASET THAT IS UNDER ACTIVE INVESTIGATION FOR RACE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. CASIE, THOSE NUMBERS, JUST HEARING OF THOSE ARE VERY ENCOURAGING TO ME WHEN I HEAR THE AMOUNT OF TESTING THAT HAS GONE UP AND WHAT A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF THOSE INDIVIDUALS WERE ASYMPTOMATIC.
SO THEY HAVE NOT HAD SERIOUS HEALTH COMPLICATIONS WITH IT HERE THAT AS WE GET MORE INFORMATION, MORE DATA, THAT WE HAVE MORE CASES IN OUR COMMUNITY, YET OUR HOSPITALIZATION REQUIREMENTS HAVE NOT GONE UP AND INCREASED AND ACTUALLY BROUGHT OUR RATE OF HOSPITALIZATION DOWN FROM THAT 10 PERCENT, SIX PERCENT NOW TO UNDER THREE PERCENT.
I THINK THOSE ARE VERY ENCOURAGING NUMBERS FOR OUR CITY.
ABSOLUTELY, AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, MANY TIMES IT TAKES YOU KNOW, PEOPLE DON'T NECESSARILY REQUIRE HOSPITALIZATION RIGHT OFF THE BAT.
SOMETIMES PEOPLE HAVE TO THEY MOVE THROUGH THE TIMELINE IN THEIR DISEASE, SOMETIMES BEFORE THEY REQUIRE HOSPITALIZATION.
SO I THINK THAT THAT THAT CAN BE HELPFUL AS WELL.
YOU KNOW, AS WE'RE ABLE TO MAKE SURE PEOPLE ARE DISCHARGED AND THEN BRING PEOPLE THAT NEED HOSPITALIZATION IN THEIR SPACE.
AND SO I THINK THE HOSPITALS HAVE DONE A GREAT JOB IN MANAGING THEIR PATIENTS AND AND THE LIKE, ESPECIALLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS THAT THEY HAVE ENACTED.
AND SO I APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT THEY'VE DONE.
I THINK OUR COMMUNITY HAS DONE A GREAT JOB WITH THOSE WITH SOCIAL DISTANCING AND MASK WEARING AND TRYING TO KEEP THE IMPACT LOW.
AND SO WE APPRECIATE ALL OF THE EFFORTS.
MELTON SAY THIS WEEK, OR MAYBE IT WAS YOU THAT ON AVERAGE THE PATIENT GOES INTO THE HOSPITAL ON THE FOURTH DAY AFTER A TEST, IS THAT RIGHT?
[00:15:01]
WELL, I THINK HE SAID MAYBE A LITTLE LATER THAN THAT.SO GENERALLY, IT MIGHT BE EVEN WITHIN THIS SECOND WEEK OF THEIR ILLNESS.
AND SO IT'S I THINK MAYBE EVEN A LITTLE LATER.
AND SO THIS ILLNESS CAN TEND TO LAST A WHILE.
SO, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU THINK OF FLU, SOMETIMES WE THINK OF JUST A FEW DAYS, BUT IT CAN EVEN LAST INTO A COUPLE OF WEEKS.
AND THIS IS THE SAME LIKE IT CAN LAST UP TO A COUPLE OF WEEKS.
AND SO GENERALLY, IF YOU'RE GOING TO BE HOSPITALIZED, IT MAY BE IN THAT SECOND WEEK.
RIGHT. I JUST THOUGHT THAT WAS VERY RELEVANT TO ANALYZING THIS DATA OUT OF TYSON.
WE'RE NOW GETTING INTO THE SECOND WEEK AFTER THOSE TESTS.
AND SO HOW IT AFFECTS OUR HOSPITAL CAPACITY IS THAT WE'RE NOW GOING TO BE ON THE DOWNSIDE OF THAT CURVE. PEOPLE WHO MOST LIKELY WOULD HAVE NEEDED HOSPITALIZATION LIKE RIGHT NOW OR MAYBE JUST A LITTLE BIT PAST ON THE TIMELINE.
SO I THINK THAT MAKES US ALL FEEL BETTER ABOUT OUR CURRENT HOSPITAL CAPACITY NUMBERS.
CASIE, COULD YOU TALK TO US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE NURSING HOMES AND ASSISTED LIVING TYPE FACILITIES? YOU KNOW, WE KNEW THAT THE HIGH DENSITY POPULATIONS WOULD BE THE THINGS THAT WE HAD TO KEEP AN EYE ON CLOSER.
NOW WE'RE MOVING TO THE NURSING HOMES AND ASSISTED LIVING.
SO JUST KIND OF A SENSE OF HOW MANY [INAUDIBLE] FACILITIES WE HAVE IN AMARILLO OR LIKE THE NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS THAT MIGHT BE IN THAT POPULATION.
I WOULD THINK THAT IT'S NOT NEAR THE DENSITY AND THE HIGH NUMBERS OF POPULATION FROM THE MEATPACKING PLANTS. AND SO JUST TO KIND OF CATCH US UP ON THAT.
RIGHT NOW, THE ORDER KIND OF PRIORITIZES NURSING HOMES, THEN ASSISTED LIVING FACILITIES AND THEN SO FORTH, AND SO THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AND OUR TEAM OF PUBLIC HEALTH.
I APPRECIATE ALL OF HAILEY'S WORK.
SHE IS OUR POINT PERSON HERE AND SHE'S WORKED VERY HARD AND DONE A GOOD JOB COORDINATING THAT EFFORT. AND SO THEY HAVE WORKED WITH THE NURSING HOMES BECAUSE WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT'S DONE VERY WELL AND WITH AS MINIMAL DISRUPTION AS WE CAN FOR THE RESIDENTS BECAUSE THAT'S THEIR HOME.
AND SO WE WANT TO BE VERY THOUGHTFUL AND VERY RESPECTFUL OF THEIR HOME.
AND SO MOST OF THE NURSING HOMES HAVE CHOSEN TO DO THAT TESTING THEMSELVES.
AND SO THE WAY WE'RE COORDINATING WITH THEM IS THAT WE ALREADY HAVE A VERY, VERY GOOD SETUP IN PLACE.
AND SO MOST OF THE NURSING HOMES HAVE CHOSEN TO ALLOW US TO TEST THEIR STAFF THROUGH THE DRIVE THRU, AND SO THEY'RE SENDING THEIR STAFF THROUGH OUR PUBLIC HEALTH DRIVE THROUGH TESTING, WHICH IS VERY, VERY HELPFUL FOR THEIR STAFF.
AND THEN THEIR STAFF ARE TESTING THEIR RESIDENCE.
AND SO THAT IS, I THINK, A VERY RESPECTFUL WAY TO HELP TEST THEIR RESIDENTS BECAUSE THEY'RE FAMILIAR WITH THEIR STAFF.
AND THAT IS IT'S ALWAYS NICE TO BE TESTED BY SOMEBODY THAT YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH.
AND SO WE'VE PROVIDED TRAINING TO THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WHO'S PROVIDED TRAINING FOR THE NURSING HOMES. AND SO THEY'RE ABLE TO DO THAT.
AND THEN THE THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, WE'RE MAKING SURE EVERYBODY HAS SUPPLIES AND THAT WE'RE ABLE TO PICK UP THOSE LABS AND COURIER THEM TO THE LABS.
SO OR THE SPECIMEN TO COURIER TO THE LAB SO THAT ALL OF THAT IS DONE VERY SEAMLESSLY.
AND SO I'VE ALWAYS SAID ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS ABOUT AMARILLO IS OUR RELATIONSHIPS.
AND TIME AND TIME AGAIN, IT PROVES ACCURATE.
THIS TIME IS YET ANOTHER SITUATION WHERE THOSE RELATIONSHIPS AND OUR ABILITY TO WORK TOGETHER AND COLLABORATE HAS MADE THIS PROCESS GO VERY SMOOTHLY.
SO I APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S EFFORT.
CASIE, ROUGHLY HOW MANY NUMBER OF TESTS ARE WE ALLOCATING TO THAT POPULATION? DID I MISS THAT? NO, I DIDN'T ANSWER THAT.
I'M SORRY, BUT I WANTED TO BE SURE I WASN'T DISTRACTING YOU.
NO, I THINK THERE'S 14 NURSING HOMES AND THEY RANGE IN POPULATION FROM JUST A FEW RESIDENTS TO OVER 100.
SO, WE'RE NOT TALKING THOUSANDS, BUT PROBABLY IN THE HUNDREDS OF TESTS.
AND IS THE STATE PROVIDING THOSE TEST CASES, IS IT COMING OUT OF OUR STOCKPILE? IT'S SO THE STATE PROVIDED US A VERY GENEROUS AMOUNT OF SUPPLIES.
AND SO WE'LL BE USING THOSE SUPPLIES TO DO THE TESTS AND THEN WE WILL BE RUNNING THOSE TESTS AND ASSISTING ANY NURSING HOMES THAT MIGHT NEED THAT ASSISTANCE WITH THE FUNDING
[00:20:07]
THAT HAS BEEN ALLOCATED TO US THROUGH COVID.PART OF MY ASKING THAT IS JUST MANAGING EXPECTATIONS THE WAY WE DID WITH WHEN WE KNEW A LOT OF TESTS WERE GOING TO BE COMING IN FROM THE MEATPACKING PLANT TO JUST LET PEOPLE KNOW AHEAD OF TIME. AND SO THIS IS, AGAIN, MORE HUNDREDS, NOT ADDITIONAL THOUSANDS BUT WE SHOULD BE ANTICIPATING STILL SEEING SOME POSITIVE INCREASES IN THE HUNDREDS AS WELL.
AND THE LABS ARE TAKING JUST A LITTLE BIT LONGER TO GET BACK WHEREAS BEFORE WE WERE RIGHT AROUND 24 TO 48 HOURS.
NOW WE'RE SEEING RETURNS AROUND FOUR AND FIVE DAYS AS TESTING CAPACITY HAS RAMPED UP AROUND THE STATE. THEIR RETURNS ARE TAKING JUST A LITTLE BIT LONGER, SO.
JUST SOMETHING ELSE TO KEEP IN MIND.
CASIE WILL YOU TALK ABOUT OUR DRIVE THRU TESTING AND YOU KNOW HOW WE'RE DOING ON SUPPLIES THERE, JUST UPDATE THE COUNCIL ON WHAT OUR SUPPLY LEVEL LOOKS LIKE.
AND THEN OTHER TESTING OPPORTUNITIES IN THE COMMUNITY SPEAK TO THE WAL-MART TESTING PLEASE? ABSOLUTELY.
SO, WE WERE PROVIDED WE PUT IT IN A STAR REQUEST AND WE WERE ALLOTTED A VERY GENEROUS AMOUNT OF SUPPLIES.
SO WE HAVE BEEN PROVIDED FIFTEEN THOUSAND NASOPHARYNGEAL FOR SWABS.
AND SO THAT ALLOWS US ALL TO BREATHE A SIGH OF RELIEF, I THINK, WITH REGARD TO SUPPLIES.
SORRY IF I SIT FOR TOO LONG, MY LIGHT TURNS OFF.
SO THAT ALLOWS US TO ALL BREATHE A SIGH OF RELIEF WHEN IT COMES TO SUPPLIES.
TEXAS TECH SCHOOL OF PHARMACY AND SCHOOL OF MEDICINE ARE MAKING A VTM.
AND SO WE'RE VERY GLAD TO HAVE THAT PARTNERSHIP HERE IN OUR COMMUNITY TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THAT VTM IN ORDER TO COMPLETE THE TEST KITS SO THAT WE HAVE AMPLE SUPPLIES TO TEST HERE IN OUR COMMUNITY. AND THEN ARE ALSO THERE'S DRIVE THRU TESTING AVAILABLE AT WAL-MART.
SO AT THREE OF THE WAL-MART'S HERE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
IF I GET ONE WRONG, ANYBODY FEEL FREE TO JUMP IN: THE ONE ON [INAUDIBLE], THE ONE ON JIM LAKE AND THE ONE ON GRAND.
'THAT RIGHT? THOSE THREE WAL-MART'S HAVE TESTING AVAILABLE FOR COVID, AND SO YOU HAVE TO GO ONLINE AND AND REGISTER AND THEN THEY WILL GIVE YOU AN APPOINTMENT TO COME IN TO BE TESTED.
AND MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT IT'S FREE OF CHARGE.
AND SO I THINK THAT'S A WONDERFUL RESOURCE THAT WE HAVE HERE IN OUR COMMUNITY AS WELL.
LIKE OUR DRIVE THRU TESTING, PEOPLE HAD TO HAVE CERTAIN SYMPTOMS. BUT WILL THEY BE FACING THAT AS WELL WHEN THEY GO ONLINE WITH WAL-MART TO SCHEDULE A TEST? ARE THOSE SAME QUESTIONS GOING TO BE ASKED? SO WHAT I'VE SEEN IS A FLYER, AND IT SAYS THAT THEY'RE TESTING BASED ON CDC RECOMMENDATIONS AND THEY DID HAVE SOME ASYMPTOMATIC CRITERIA, BUT I THINK IT WAS FAIRLY LIMITED TO CERTAIN PLACES.
I CAN LOOK INTO THAT AND LET YOU KNOW.
FOR THE GENERAL POPULATION, IT IS BASED ON THE CDC REQUIREMENTS.
AND THERE ARE SOME THERE'S SYMPTOMATOLOGY REQUIRED.
I WAS GOING TO TELL Y'ALL THAT I WAS ON A PHONE CALL WITH CASIE NOT TOO LONG AGO, AND WHILE WE WERE TALKING, SHE WAS ANSWERING QUESTIONS AND SHE'S LIKE, OH, YES.
AND SHE HAD JUST SCORED LIKE, I DON'T KNOW, FIVE HUNDRED SWABS ON AMAZON, JUST CONSTANTLY GOING ON LOOKING FOR THESE SWAPS.
THE SWAPS WERE WHAT WERE REALLY HOLDING US BACK LOCALLY IN OUR TESTING CAPACITY.
AND SHE WAS TRYING TO FIND THEM IN ANY QUANTITY FROM ANY SOURCE AT ALL TIMES OF THE DAY.
AND I KNOW EVEN AT NIGHT SHE WOULD GO HOME AND SHE WOULD GET ON AMAZON LOOKING FOR SWAPS.
SO IT WAS A REALLY BIG DEAL FOR THE STATE TO RESPONSIBLY SEND US 15000 SWAPS WHEN OUR VERY DILIGENT, DEDICATED DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC HEALTH HAS BEEN SPENDING HER A LOT OF HER TIME SEARCHING FOR THEM HIGH AND LOW ON ONLINE.
THAT'S JUST THIS ONE STORY THAT SHOWS THE DEDICATION THAT SHE'S BEEN WORKING FOR OUR CITY OVER THE PAST FEW WEEKS.
DOES ANYBODY ELSE HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT TESTING? ONE OTHER FOLLOW UP ON ANY RISE IN CASES IN OUR DAY CARE, NOT THAT WE HAVE NOT
[00:25:04]
THAT'S BEEN REPORTED TO US SO FAR.THAT'S EXCELLENT. SO IT TENDS TO SO FAR WE'RE STILL SEEING THE DATA THAT OUR YOUNGER AGES ARE VERY, VERY LOW RISK FOR CONTRACTING THIS VIRUS.
SO THE LONGER WE'RE REOPENING AND HAVING MORE EXPOSURE.
AND THAT'S A SPECIFIC POPULATION THAT HAD BEEN ISOLATED FOR A WHILE.
YES. AND I THINK AS DAYCARES START OPENING UP AND AS PEOPLE START GOING BACK TO WORK, I THINK IT'S CERTAINLY IMPORTANT TO NOTE THERE'S LOTS OF REQUIREMENTS AT DAYCARES.
AND WE APPRECIATE THE HARD WORK THAT'S BEING DONE TO PROTECT OUR CHILDREN.
I THINK WE'VE HAD FEWER CHILDREN AT DAYCARE.
AND SO I THINK THAT HAS CERTAINLY BEEN HELPFUL.
AS MORE CHILDREN START GOING BACK TO DAYCARE, IT'S IMPORTANT TO KEEP THOSE MEASURES IN PLACE AND TO WORK EVEN HARDER TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE SAFE.
CASIE, CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT CONTRACT INVESTIGATIONS AND WHERE WE ARE? AS FAR AS OUR GO ON TO STAFF, ALL OF THAT AND JUST GIVE US AN UPDATE THERE? YES. SO WE HAVE.
SO RIGHT NOW OUR FULL TIME STAFF IS AROUND THIRTY SEVEN FULL TIME STAFF MEMBERS.
AND THAT'S JUST SERVE ALL TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY THOUSAND PEOPLE HERE IN POTTER AND RANDALL COUNTY. SO WE HAVE BEEN FORTUNATE TO BE ABLE TO INCREASE OUR STAFFING.
AND WE HAVE WE'VE NEARLY WE'VE PROBABLY DOUBLED OUR STAFF OR MORE.
SO WE'VE HIRED TEAMS OF NURSES TO AUGMENT OUR STAFF FOR CONTACT INVESTIGATION OR CONTACT TRACING. AND THEY HAVE BEEN WONDERFUL.
WE'VE APPRECIATED ALL THAT THEY'VE DONE.
AND WE HIRED PROBABLY CLOSE TO 20 ADDITIONAL NURSES FOR THAT CONTACT INVESTIGATIONS.
WE'VE ALSO WORKED WITH THEIR REFUGEE LANGUAGE PROJECT AND DR.
RYAN PENNINGTON AND HIS GROUP.
AND WE'VE HIRED NINE INTERPRETERS THAT SPEAK VARIOUS LANGUAGES THAT ARE VERY HELPFUL TO OUR TEAM. AND HIS TEAM STARTED THIS WEEK.
AND SO THAT HAS BEEN THE MOST VALUABLE RESOURCE THAT I CAN'T SPEAK HIGHLY ENOUGH OF HIS TEAM AND THE INTERPRETERS THAT ARE NOW ON OUR TEAM.
THEY HIT THE GROUND RUNNING EARLY THIS WEEK AND ARE JUST I'M SORRY.
LATE LAST WEEK. IT'S JUST TUESDAY, ISN'T IT? I LOSE ALL TRACK OF DAYS NOW.
SO THEY STARTED LATE LAST WEEK WITH US AND INTEGRATED WITH OUR TEAM AND ARE NOW WORKING INDEPENDENTLY. AND SO THEY'RE REALLY HELPFUL.
THEIR LEADERSHIP IN THEIR COMMUNITIES AND IN THE GREATER COMMUNITY IS SO VALUABLE TO US.
AND SO WE'RE REALLY THANKFUL FOR THEIR HELP.
SO WE HAVE INTEGRATED THAT TEAM, AS WELL AS SOME OF THE ADDITIONAL CITY STAFF THAT WERE EITHER PART TIME OR THEIR DEPARTMENT WAS CLOSED.
THAT THOSE TEAMS HAVE COME ON BOARD AND ARE HELPING US IN VARIOUS CAPACITIES.
AND SO I THINK ONE OF THE BEST THINGS ABOUT PUBLIC HEALTH IS THE FLEXIBILITY.
AND SO WE HAVE CERTAINLY BEEN FLEXIBLE AND WELCOMED LOTS OF NEW FACES AND LOTS OF NEW TEAM MEMBERS. AND SO WE'RE WORKING VERY HARD.
THERE'S NEVER ENOUGH PEOPLE TO DO ALL OF THE WORK.
AND SO I THINK EACH CONTACT TRACER CAN DO AROUND 10 OR 12 A DAY, ESPECIALLY WITH LANGUAGE BARRIERS. AND SO THEY'RE WORKING AS HARD AS THEY CAN TO WORK THROUGH EACH OF THOSE NEW CASES. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THE LAST THING I WOULD SAY IS THAT LAST WEEK ON THURSDAY, COUNCIL WOMAN POWELL HOSTED A MEETING FOR OUR LOCAL CHURCH LEADERS AND CASIE AND DR.
MELTON WERE THERE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS.
WE HAD EXCELLENT QUESTIONS AND FREDA, I'LL THROW YOU THE REINS TO LET YOU GIVE AN UPDATE ON THAT MEETING BEFORE CASIE JUMPS OFF FOR US.
BASICALLY, WE TRIED TO MEET WITH AS MANY PASTORS IN THE COMMUNITY AS POSSIBLE BECAUSE WITH THE I DON'T WANT TO NECESSARILY SAY THE REOPENING OF CHURCHES, BUT WITH SERVICES RESUMING. THERE WERE A LOT OF QUESTIONS REGARDING JUST DIFFERENT MEDICAL ISSUES WITHIN THEIR CONGREGANTS.
AND SO THE PASTORS OF ALL THE CHURCHES, THEY JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WHEN CHURCH
[00:30:02]
SERVICES RESUME, THAT THEY ARE DOING ALL THE THINGS THAT THEY NEED TO BE DOING.THEY WANTED JUST A LITTLE BIT OF GUIDANCE, BUT THEY ALSO WANT TO BE OPERATING UNDER THE CDC POLICIES AS WELL.
AND SO THEY WANTED TO JUST KIND OF MOVE VERY CAUTIOUSLY.
MELTON AND ALSO CASIE, THEY ANSWERED A LOT OF DIFFERENT MEDICAL QUESTIONS THAT THEY HAD.
AND SO I'LL LET CASIE MAYBE SHARE JUST A LITTLE BIT OF THAT CONVERSATION WITH YOU ALL.
WE HAD A GOOD DISCUSSION, ANSWERED LOTS OF TECHNICAL QUESTIONS.
I THINK IT'S GOOD FOR PEOPLE TO BE ABLE TO ASK THOSE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW THEY CAN OPERATIONALIZE SOME OF THOSE PIECES.
AND SO THOSE WERE THE MAIN QUESTIONS THAT THEY ASKED WERE KIND OF HOW THEY CAN OPERATIONALIZE SOME OF THOSE PIECES THAT WERE SPECIFIC TO THEM.
AND SO WE WERE ABLE TO TALK THROUGH SOME OF THOSE PIECES AND.
IT WAS A GOOD CONVERSATION AND GOOD QUESTIONS AND A GOOD TIME OF INFORMATION SHARING.
THEY HAD REALLY GOOD QUESTIONS.
AND ONE OF THE MAIN TAKEAWAYS I HAD FROM THAT MEETING THAT I WANTED TO PUT OUT THERE FOR THE REST OF Y'ALL WAS THEY WERE ASKING ABOUT VENTILATION AND HOW AIR MOVES THROUGH A ROOM.
AND I THOUGHT, DR. MELTON, AND CASIE ANSWERED IT SO WELL, YOU THINK ABOUT THE REASON WE SAY SOCIAL DISTANCE IS SIX FEET IS BECAUSE THAT'S THE AVERAGE OF WHAT A PERSON CAN SNEEZE SIX FEET. BUT IF YOU ARE SITTING BESIDE AN AIR CONDITIONER VENT OR SOMETHING THAT'S ACTUALLY ADDING FORCE TO YOUR SNEEZING OR YOUR SINGING OR YOUR EXHALE.
WHICH WOULD TAKE PARTICLES OUT OF YOUR RESPIRATORY SYSTEM AND PUT THEM OUT IN THE AIR LIVE THAT SOMEONE ELSE COULD INHALE THEM.
THAT'S A FACTOR TO BE CONSIDERED.
SO I THOUGHT THAT WAS SOMETHING I REALLY LEARNED FROM THAT MEETING.
AND I WANTED TO SAY THAT OUT THERE AND START GETTING THAT OUT THERE FOR CITIZENS TO HEAR TO IT. IT'S ABOUT THE RESPIRATORY PARTICLES.
AND IF YOU'RE STANDING IN FRONT OF A FAN OR SITTING DOWNWIND FROM SOMEONE ON AN AIR CONDITIONER UNIT, THAT NUMBER COULD BE DIFFERENT.
SIX FEET MIGHT NOT BE SIX FEET.
IT MIGHT BE EIGHT FEET OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
JUST ON THIS TOPIC, I JUST WANTED TO ADDRESS AN APPRECIATION TO OUR GOVERNOR FOR RECOGNIZING AT THE VERY BEGINNING THAT CHURCHES WERE IDENTIFIED AS AN ESSENTIAL BUSINESS AND HOW CRUCIAL THEY ARE TO COMMUNITIES AND THE CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS FOR OUR RELIGIOUS FREEDOMS. AND JUST ANOTHER REASON TO BE VERY GRATEFUL TO BE LIVING IN THE STATE OF TEXAS RIGHT NOW WHEN WE SEE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT HAVE OCCURRED IN OTHER STATES AND OTHER COMMUNITIES. SO APPRECIATE OUR GOVERNOR AND APPRECIATE OUR LOCAL PASTORS STEPPING UP TO THE PLATE AND MAKING DECISIONS TO PROTECT THEIR CONGREGATION.
AND THEN NOW LOOKING AT, OK, WHAT'S THE PATH BACK TO BEING ABLE TO GET TOGETHER AND JUST APPRECIATE ALL THE SIDES OF THAT PARTNERSHIP.
IF YOU ARE A CHURCH LEADER AND YOU WERE NOT ABLE TO ATTEND THAT MEETING OR IF YOU ARE A MEMBER OF A CHURCH AND YOU VISIT WITH YOUR PASTOR ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT THEY WERE AT THAT MEETING, YOU KNOW, WE'VE JUST BEEN TRYING TO ADD ONTO AN EMAIL LIST EVERYONE THAT WE KNEW AND COULD GET INFORMATION FOR.
SO IF YOU BY CHANCE, MISSED THAT MEETING, NO WORRIES.
AND SO IF YOU'RE A PASTOR AND YOU WOULD LIKE TO GET A COPY OF THAT MEETING TO HEAR WHAT WAS DISCUSSED AND ALSO TO GET ON TO THE EMAIL LIST SO THAT YOU CAN BE A PART OF THOSE CONVERSATIONS IN THE FUTURE.
FOR ANY FAITH BASED ORGANIZATION, JUST CONTACT STEPHANIE COGGINS AT CITY HALL OR THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE AND WE CAN GET YOU ADDED TO THAT.
AND STEPHANIE WOULD BE HAPPY TO SHARE A COPY OF THAT CONTENT WITH YOU AS WELL.
OK. FREDA, ANYTHING ELSE ON THAT? I WAS JUST GOING TO SAY, I THINK THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE FOR MOST OF THE PASTORS WAS THE SOCIAL DISTANCING, YOU KNOW, AND THAT'S GOING TO DEPEND ON THE SIZE OF THEIR FACILITY OR THE SIZE OF THE CHURCH, YOU KNOW, THAT THEY'RE USING.
BUT I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY WHAT THEY WERE STRUGGLING WITH THE MOST, IS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO, YOU KNOW, HOW TO SEPARATE THE DIFFERENT POPULATIONS.
SO, YOU KNOW, WE DO HAVE THE 65 AND OLDER, YOU KNOW, WHETHER YOU DO ANOTHER SERVICE OR HAVE TWO SERVICES OR MAYBE YOU HAVE THAT POPULATION THAT ON ONE SIDE OF THE CHURCH.
AND THEN IT'S LIKE FAMILY UNITS.
MAYBE THE FAMILY UNIT [INAUDIBLE] ON A FEW TOGETHER, YOU KNOW, NOT OPENING DAY CARES RIGHT NOW. MAYBE YOUR CHILDREN STAY WITH YOU.
[00:35:01]
AND SO I THINK THOSE WERE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES AS WELL THAT THEY'RE TRYING TO WORK THROUGH. YES, AND THAT WAS ONE OF THE TAKEAWAYS, TOO, FROM TESTING, EVEN AT TYSON IS RECOGNIZING HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE ASYMPTOMATIC.I MEAN, WE DON'T HAVE IT BROKEN DOWN EXACTLY BY NUMBERS.
BUT YOU CAN TELL THAT THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT PERCENTAGE OF THE TESTS THAT WERE POSITIVE, THAT ARE ASYMPTOMATIC AND JUST DISCUSSING THAT WITH PASTORS AS WELL.
YOU CAN HAVE SOMEONE COME TO AN IN-PERSON SERVICE AND THEY DON'T KNOW THEY'RE SICK.
AND THEN EVERYONE, THEY'RE SITTING AROUND OR DOWNWIND FROM IN THE AIR CONDITIONER UNIT OR WALKING THROUGH THE HALLWAY WITH WHILE YOU'RE WALKING TO AND FROM A SANCTUARY SETTING YOU'RE POSSIBLY LIKELY INFECTING THEM BECAUSE THIS IS SO CONTAGIOUS SO THERE WAS GOOD CONVERSATION, I THOUGHT, SURROUNDING THAT POINT AS WELL.
HOW MANY PEOPLE ATTENDED THAT MEETING LAST WEEK? I DON'T KNOW, STEPHANIE MAY HAVE A ROSTER OR MAY KNOW APPROXIMATELY HOW MANY PARTICIPANTS WE HAD. THERE WERE TWENTY ONE CHURCH STAFF MEMBERS FROM 19 CHURCHES.
YES. AND THEN I THINK THERE WERE SIX OR SEVEN OTHER STAFF, CITY STAFF.
COUNCILWOMAN POWELL AND I WERE ON THERE.
THERE ARE ABOUT 30 PEOPLE ON THE CALL I THINK.
CERTAINLY NOT ALL OF OUR CHURCHES, ALL OF OUR FAITH BASED ORGANIZATIONS.
OK. ANYTHING ELSE FOR CASIE, IF NOT, WE'RE GOING TO LET HER GET BACK TO ALL THE IMPORTANT THINGS THAT SHE'S DOING TODAY.
CASIE, WE APPRECIATE YOUR WORK.
THANKS FOR BEING WITH US TODAY.
THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE YOU ALL.
JARED? WELL, I JUST WANTED TO GO OVER THE DETAILS OF GA TWENTY THREE.
THE GOVERNOR'S EXECUTIVE ORDER, GA 23.
EXCUSE ME. AS IT AFFECTS AMARILLO AND POTTER AND RANDALL COUNTIES.
IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT MOORE COUNTY, POTTER AND RANDALL COUNTIES, [INAUDIBLE] SMITH COUNTY AND EL PASO COUNTY HAVE A DIFFERENT SCHEDULE THAN THE REST OF THE STATE.
IT'S JUST BACK JUST A LITTLE BIT.
AND I'LL GO INTO MORE DETAIL AS WE GET TO THOSE ITEMS. GA TWENTY THREE, WHICH IS THE ORDER THAT THE GOVERNOR PUT INTO EFFECT YESTERDAY, IS GOING TO CONTINUE UNTIL JUNE 4TH.
IT INCLUDES ALL OF THE ESSENTIAL SERVICES, RELIGIOUS SERVICES.
AND THEN THEY REOPEN SERVICES THAT EXISTED IN GA 21, INCLUDING RETAIL SERVICES THAT CAN BE PROVIDED THROUGH PICKUP, DELIVERY, MAIL OR DELIVERY TO THE CUSTOMER'S DOORSTEP, IN-STORE RETAIL SERVICES, DINE-IN RESTAURANT SERVICES, MOVIE THEATERS, SHOPPING MALLS, MUSEUMS, LIBRARIES, GOLF COURSE OPERATIONS, WEDDING VENUES AND WEDDING RECEPTIONS.
COSMETOLOGISTS SALONS, HAIR SALONS, BARBERSHOPS, TANNING SALONS, SWIMMING POOLS, OFFICE WORKERS, MANUFACTURING SERVICES AND GYMS AND EXERCISE.
SO ALL OF THOSE HAVE SOME RESTRICTIONS.
AND UNDER GA 21, THOSE INCLUDED A TWENTY FIVE PERCENT LIMIT ON OCCUPANCY AND THEN SOME RESTRICTIONS LIKE THE GYMS, NO LOCKER ROOMS, NO SHOWERS, THINGS LIKE THAT, AS WELL AS 25 PERCENT OF THE TOTAL OCCUPANCY ALLOWED.
STEPHANIE IS PUTTING UP ON THE SCREEN RIGHT NOW A VERY HIGH LEVEL OVERVIEW OF GA 23.
BEAR IN MIND, GA TWENTY THREE HAS A LOT OF DIFFERENT PHASES.
A LOT OF DIFFERENT TRIGGER DATES AND A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS THAT FALL INTO EACH ONE OF THOSE TRIGGER DATES AND THEN MULTIPLE COUNTIES HAVING DIFFERENT TRIGGERS FOR EACH ONE OF THESE OTHER PHASES. SO THIS IS A GOOD BASELINE GUIDE FOR HOW TO LOOK AT GA TWENTY THREE.
ON MAY, TWENTY NINTH FOR OUR HEALTH DISTRICT FOR POTTER AND RANDALL COUNTIES.
UNDERSTANDING THIS IS ABOUT 11 DAYS BEHIND THE REST OF THE STATE.
THE GOVERNOR HAS ALLOWED MASSAGE ESTABLISHMENTS TO OPEN ALONG WITH PERSONAL CARE AND BEAUTY SERVICES, INCLUDING TATTOO STUDIOS, PIERCING STUDIOS, HAIR REMOVAL SERVICES, HAIR LOSS TREATMENT AND GROWTH SERVICES AND CHILD CARE SERVICES.
ALL THOSE THINGS GOING TO HAPPEN ABOUT 11 DAYS AFTER THE REST OF THE STATE.
SO MAY TWENTY NINE IS WHEN THAT'S GONNA BE AVAILABLE FOR POTTER AND RANDALL COUNTIES.
AND THIS IS GONNA BE ABOUT SEVEN DAYS BEHIND THE REST OF THE STATE.
THE GOVERNOR IS ALLOWING DINING RESTAURANT SERVICES TO EXPAND TO 50 PERCENT OF LISTED OCCUPANCY.
BARS AND SIMILAR ESTABLISHMENTS THAT HAVE UP UNTIL MAY TWENTY NINE BEEN REQUIRED TO BE CLOSED, CAN OPEN AT TWENTY FIVE PERCENT.
I KNOW THAT'S BEEN A COMMON QUESTION THAT I'VE RECEIVED IS WHEN THE BAR IS GOING TO BE
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ABLE TO OPEN. THAT'S MAY TWENTY NINTH AND POTTER AND RANDALL COUNTIES.UNTIL THEN, THEY'RE NOT OPEN. THE AQUARIUM'S NATURAL CAVERNS.
SIMILAR FACILITIES WHICH DON'T REALLY TOUCH RANDALL AND POTTER COUNTIES.
BUT ONE NOTABLE THING ON THAT CLAUSE IS THAT IT STILL EXCLUDES ZOOS ON MAY 29.
BOWLING ALLEYS, BINGO HALLS, SIMULCASTS RACING, RODEOS AND EQUESTRIAN EVENTS, ALL THOSE THINGS WERE TWENTY FIVE PERCENT.
INTERESTING TO NOTE, WHEN IT TALKS ABOUT RODEOS AND EQUESTRIAN EVENTS, IT ONLY SPEAKS TO THE RODEOS AND EQUESTRIAN EVENTS IN INDOOR AND OUTDOOR FACILITIES.
IT DOES NOT SPEAK TO OTHER EVENTS THAT MIGHT BE PAIRED WITH RODEO AND EQUESTRIAN EVENTS LIKE A FAIR OR OTHER TYPE OF EVENT LIKE THAT.
DRIVE-IN CONCERTS ARE ALLOWED TO OPEN ON MAY TWENTY NINTH, ALONG WITH AMATEUR SPORTING EVENTS. AGAIN, NO GENERAL PUBLIC ALLOWED.
ALL PARTICIPANTS HAVE TO BE TESTED NEGATIVE FOR COVID-19.
THEY HAVE TO BE QUARANTINED FOR THE LENGTH OF THE EVENT AND BE TEMPERATURE CHECKED AND MONITORED FOR SYMPTOMS DAILY AS LONG AS THE EVENT GOES AND HAVE TO BE TESTED AGAIN FOR COVID-19 AT THE END OF THE EVENT.
SO AMATEUR SPORTING EVENTS, WHILE THEY'RE OPEN, THERE'S A LOT OF HOOPS TO JUMP THROUGH ON THAT. IT'S GOING TO MAKE IT VERY DIFFICULT, ESPECIALLY WITH REGARD TO THE TESTING.
STARTING MAY TWENTY NINE FOR ALL COUNTIES.
SO THIS IS NOT JUST FOR RANDALL AND POTTER COUNTIES, BUT ALSO FOR ALL THE REST OF THE STATE. OUTDOOR AREAS OF ZOOS OPEN AT TWENTY FIVE PERCENT, NORMAL OPERATING LIMITS AND THEN STARTING AND MAY THIRTY FIRST FOR ALL COUNTIES, PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL, BASEBALL, SOFTBALL, GOLF, TENNIS, FOOTBALL AND CAR RACING EVENTS, NO SPECTATORS CAN BE IN ATTENDANCE.
SO WE'LL BE DOING THOSE PROFESSIONAL EVENTS WITH NO SPECTATORS.
ALSO ON MAY 3RD, YOUTH CAMPS CAN OPEN, ALL SUMMER CAMPS AND OTHER DAY TIME AND THE OVERNIGHT CAMP FOR KIDS.
AND THEN YOUTH SPORTS PROGRAMS CAN BEGIN PRACTICING ON MAY THIRTY FIRST, BUT THEY CAN'T BEGIN COMPETITIONS ON UNTIL JUNE 15TH.
THAT JUST MEANS IT'S ALLOWED; IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT ALL VENUE OPERATORS ARE GOING TO OPEN.
ALSO, THE GOVERNOR WAS VERY CLEAR TO AGAIN NOTE THAT HE IS THE ONLY SOURCE OF MODIFICATIONS TO THESE ORDERS.
THERE IS NO OPTION FOR ANY JURISDICTION TO HAVE LESS OR MORE RESTRICTIVE REQUIREMENTS.
ALSO, PEOPLE ARE STILL GUIDED TO AVOID VISITING INTERACTIVE AMUSEMENT FOR RANDALL AND POTTER COUNTIES. THAT PRIMARILY MEANS AMUSEMENT PARKS AND WATER PARKS.
PEOPLE SHOULDN'T VISIT NURSING HOMES OR ARE DIRECTED NOT TO VISIT NURSING HOMES.
SO THEY SHALL NOT VISIT NURSING HOMES AND OTHER ASSOCIATED FACILITIES.
THEN, BEGINNING JUNE 1ST, SCHOOLS, PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICTS CAN OPEN IN-PERSON CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION, SUMMER COURSES, PRIVATE SCHOOLS AND INSTITUTIONS ON THE SAME DATE ARE ALLOWED TO REOPEN. THEY'RE ENCOURAGED TO USE THE SAME STANDARDS FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
AND THEN FINALLY, ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AND FIRE MARSHAL'S OFFICE IF GOING TO CONTINUE TO MONITOR FOR COMPLIANCE TO MEET TO THE EXECUTIVE ORDER.
THAT'S ALL I HAVE ON THAT. BUT THERE'S A LOT THERE.
SO IS THERE ANY QUESTIONS THAT COUNCIL HAS ON THAT? YES, SO JARED, SO EXECUTIVE ORDER GA TWENTY THREE, SO THAT GOES THROUGH JUNE 3RD.
IS THAT CORRECT? FOURTH, YES MA'AM.
JUNE FOURTH? OK. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT COUNCIL? JARED, ON THE GOLF COURSES, JUST OUR OPERATION HERE LOCALLY, ARE WE STILL...WHAT'S OUR SITUATION WITH WALKING VERSUS CARTS? ONE PERSON PER CART. WHAT LEVEL ARE WE AT RIGHT NOW? I GOING TO HAVE KEVIN JUMP ON OR MICHAEL IF WE HAVE HIM.
I KNOW WE'VE BEEN TALKING TO MICHAEL ABOUT THAT.
I WANT TO HAVE THE EXPERTS TALKING TO YOU.
KEVIN, IS MICHAEL WITH US? HE MIGHT BE, BUT I COULD PROBABLY ANSWER IT.
OK. JUMP ON. GOLF WAS LIMITED TO.
WELL, ANY SPORTING ACTIVITY THAT COULD BE LIMITED TO FOUR PEOPLE WAS ALLOWED.
SO OUR GOLF COURSES ARE OPEN AND OPERATING AS NORMAL WITH OUR GROUPS LIMITED TO FOURSOMES. WHERE IN THE PAST WE MAY HAVE ALLOWED FIVESOMES ON CERTAIN OCCASIONS.
BUT WE'RE ALLOWING TWO PEOPLE PER CART OR JUST ONE? AS LONG AS YOU'RE FROM THE SAME HOUSEHOLD.
OTHERWISE, IT IS ONE PER CART.
AND WE OBVIOUSLY WILL CONTINUE DOING URGE WALKING IN THE LIGHT.
SO GOLF IS BASICALLY RUNNING CLOSE TO NORMAL.
WE DO HAVE LIMITATIONS AND REALLY ARE NOT OPERATING TOURNAMENTS AT THIS TIME.
THANK YOU. ANY IDEA IF WE'LL BE ABLE TO DO SOME OF THOSE SUMMER TOURNAMENTS? THE PLAN RIGHT NOW IS FOR US TO LOOK AT, I THINK, THE TOURNAMENTS, AS THE GOVERNOR'S ORDER
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SHIFTS AND CHANGES AND WILL ALLOW FOR RATHER THAN DOING SHOTGUN STARTS, WHERE EVERYBODY BASICALLY GATHERS TOGETHER AND THEN GOES OUT TO THE VARIOUS HOLES ON THE COURSE, BASICALLY WE WOULD DO A STAGGERED START WHERE ALL INDIVIDUALS WOULD GO TO THEIR ASSIGNED HOLE THAT THEY WOULD START AT.AND IT WOULD BE BASICALLY A STARTING FROM THE STARTING POINT.
OF COURSE, WOULD BE A STAGGERED START FOR THE GOLF TOURNAMENT.
SO WE ARE LOOKING AT DOING THAT IN SOME OF THE FUTURE PHASES, LIKE PHASE TWO OR THREE.
BUT AT THIS POINT, THAT'S NOT AVAILABLE TO US TO DO THAT BECAUSE OF THE LIMITATIONS ON PEOPLE AND TRYING TO MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING.
YEAH, I THINK ALSO IMPORTANT ENOUGH IS THAT A NUMBER OF OUR LARGER TOURNAMENTS HAVE ALREADY CANCELED THEIR EVENT FOR THIS YEAR BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, UNKNOWNS, BECAUSE OF THE AMOUNT OF LEAD TIME THEY NEED FOR GETTING SUPPLIES, GIFTS, RESERVATIONS, YOU KNOW, ALL THAT, ALL THAT.
A NUMBER OF THEM HAVE ALREADY CANCELED THEY'RE PLANNING FOR TWENTY TWENTY ONE.
THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT SOMEONE CAN'T COME IN LATE IN THE SEASON, GO AHEAD AND SCHEDULE A TOURNAMENT BECAUSE A LOT OF THOSE DATES ARE OPEN NOW.
CORRECT. THERE'S ALSO SOME CONCERNS HAVE BEEN VOICED BY SOME OF OUR MAJOR SPONSORS ABOUT THE FINANCIAL IMPACT AND THEM TRYING TO BASICALLY LOOK AT THE THE CHARITABLE DOLLARS THAT THEY USE TO TO BENEFIT A TOURNAMENT.
SO LIKE OUR TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS.
THE MAJOR SPONSORS TO THOSE TOURNAMENTS HAVE LOOKED TO OTHER CHARITABLE OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN THE COMMUNITY THAT THEY ARE MOVING THEIR DOLLARS TO RATHER THAN THE GOLF TOURNAMENT. THEY ARE GOING TO REEVALUATE THAT AND WE'LL LOOK AT THAT FOR NEXT YEAR.
BUT I KNOW THAT IS AN EXAMPLE OF ONE SERIES OF TOURNAMENTS, OUR BIGGEST SERIES OF TOURNAMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN CANCELED.
AND A LOT OF THAT HAD TO DO NOT ONLY WITH THE SOCIAL DISTANCING, BUT WITH THE FINANCIAL IMPACTS, AND WANTING TO MAKE SURE THAT THEIR DOLLARS THAT THEY WERE ASSIGNING TO CHARITABLE DONATIONS WERE BEING APPLIED TO OTHER TYPES OF ACTIVITIES IN THE COMMUNITY THAT THEY FELT WERE MORE IMPORTANT THIS TIME.
MAYOR, I THINK IT'S ALSO WORTH NOTING ON GA TWENTY THREE UNTIL MAY, TWENTY NINTH, WE REMAIN UNDER THE STANDARDS OF GA 21.
SO GA 21 IS COMPLIANT WITH GA TWENTY THREE WHEN YOU'RE IN THE COUNTIES THAT WERE LISTED I .E. MOORE COUNTY, POTTER COUNTY, RANDALL COUNTY, [INAUDIBLE] SMITH COUNTY AND EL PASO COUNTY. SO WE DON'T HAVE TO DO A MAYOR'S ORDER OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
WE CAN JUST ADOPT A RESOLUTION NEXT TUESDAY FOR GA TWENTY THREE, WHERE WE HAVE A CITY RESOLUTION THAT IS EXACTLY CONSISTENT WITH GA TWENTY THREE.
SO WE'LL REMAIN IN PHASE ONE UNTIL MAY TWENTY NINE.
AND I WILL SAY THAT WHEN I VISITED THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE ABOUT THE FACT THAT THEY WERE GOING TO HOLD OUR COUNTIES BACK, YOU KNOW, THE IMPRESSION IS THAT IF OUR NUMBERS WERE TO SHOOT UP OR IF OUR HOSPITAL CAPACITY WAS TO, IT'S TRENDING DOWN NOW, WHICH IS [INAUDIBLE] TO BE IF THAT WERE TO [INAUDIBLE] FOR SOME REASON IN THE NEXT SEVEN DAYS, THEN I THINK THE GOVERNOR WOULD LOOK AT WHETHER OR NOT THAT EVEN SEVEN DAY WINDOW WAS THE RIGHT WINDOW FOR US.
BUT I THINK BASED ON WHAT I'M HEARING FROM DR.
MELTON AND CASIE AND JUST KNOWING THE TIMING OF WHEN THOSE TESTS WERE DONE AND HOW THE DISEASE PROGRESSES, I FEEL LIKE WE'RE IN GOOD SHAPE BASED ON THE WINDOW THAT HE'S GIVEN US. BUT JUST FOR EXPECTATION'S SAKE.
YOU KNOW, NO GUARANTEE THAT WE WOULD OPEN THAT DAY IF OUR NUMBERS WERE TO CHANGE SOMEHOW.
WE'RE JUST NOT TRYING TO THROW UNCERTAINTY INTO EVERYONE'S MIX.
BUT AS A BUSINESS OWNER, IF YOU'RE TRYING TO MAKE PLANS ON GETTING OPEN, I THINK THERE'S A GOOD CHANCE YOU'LL BE OPEN.
BUT LIKE I SAID, THERE'S NO GUARANTEE AS WE'RE WATCHING THOSE NUMBERS AND THE GOVERNOR IS WATCHING. YEAH, YEAH.
I THINK EVERYONE DEFINITELY NEEDS TO PAY ATTENTION TO THE REPORT CARD AS WE GO FORWARD.
AND THEN ALSO THE PRESS CONFERENCES WHERE WE'LL BE ANNOUNCING, YOU KNOW, WHERE DR.
MELTON FREQUENTLY TALKS ABOUT HOW WE'RE DOING AT HOSPITALS, ALONG WITH [INAUDIBLE] AND I APOLOGIZE. DR.
WISE. MR. CITY MANAGER, CAN WE GO BACK TO THAT SLIDE OF JUST SHOWING I JUST WANT TO KNOW AGAIN WHICH BUSINESSES HAD NOT BEEN ALLOWED TO OPEN AT ALL SO FAR.
YOU KNOW, WE HAD STAGGERED OPENING AND JUST WHO IS STILL ON THE LIST THAT HAS NOT BEEN ABLE TO REOPEN EVEN AT THE TWENTY FIVE PERCENT LEVEL CAPACITY? UNTIL MAY TWENTY NINTH IN AMARILLO IN POTTER AND RANDALL COUNTIES ALSO MOORE [INAUDIBLE] AND EL PASO, BUT TO OUR TOPIC POTTER, AND RANDALL COUNTIES UNTIL MAY 29.
[00:50:01]
THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT ARE NOT OPEN: CANNOT GO TO, SHALL NOT GO TO.SO THE GOVERNOR'S VERY CLEAR IN GA 21 AND HE STAYS CONSISTENT WITH THAT IN GA TWENTY THREE THAT WE'RE NOT ALLOWED TO OPEN THOSE THINGS UNTIL MAY 29 FOR THOSE BUSINESSES IN OUR JURISDICTION NOT ALLOWED OPEN.
THAT INCLUDES AS YOU SEE ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE SCREEN.
BASICALLY, THAT ENTIRE LIST ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE SCREEN.
AND CAN YOU CLARIFY FOR ME ON THE CHILD CARE SERVICES, BECAUSE WE DO HAVE DAYCARE FACILITIES THAT ARE OPEN NOW.
BUT IS THAT STILL JUST RESTRICTED TO ESSENTIAL WORKERS? CAN YOU CLARIFY WHY THAT'S ON THE LIST, YET WE HAVE DAYCARES OPEN? YEAH. THOSE ARE SERVICING ESSENTIAL BUSINESSES AND ESSENTIAL WORKERS.
SO THIS WOULD BE CHILD CARE THAT'S NOT RELATED OR TIED TO AN ESSENTIAL BUSINESS OR ESSENTIAL WORKER? YES, MA'AM.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THE GOVERNOR'S NEW ORDER? JARED, NEXT TOPIC.
WELL, WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING ELSE PREPARED TO PRESENT, BUT WE HAVE A LOT OF SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS ARE PEOPLE THAT HAVE A LOT OF INFORMATION THAT CAN ANSWER A LOT OF GENERIC OR GENERAL QUESTIONS. OBVIOUSLY, CASIE IS NOT ON THE CALL ANYMORE.
BUT FROM A BUDGETARY STANDPOINT, FROM A CITY FACILITY STANDPOINT, WE'VE NEVER REALLY CLOSED OUR OPERATIONS.
WE DID, HOWEVER, CLOSE OUR FACILITIES TO THE PUBLIC SO THAT WE COULD LIMIT FACE TO FACE INTERACTIONS AND MANAGE THOSE INTERACTIONS AND BE ABLE TO MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE AREN'T EXPOSING THEMSELVES UNNECESSARILY BECAUSE ALMOST ALL OF OUR SERVICES CAN BE PROVIDED VIRTUALLY. REALLY, THE ONLY ONES THAT COULDN'T DURING, YOU KNOW, LIKE LIBRARIES, WE DID CLOSE THE LIBRARIES FOR A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.
WE OPENED THEM UP TO CURBSIDE SERVICE AS SOON AS WE COULD.
AND THEN ON MAY 11TH, WE MOVE TO INSIDE SERVICES BEING AVAILABLE.
SAME IS TRUE WITH UTILITY BILLING.
ON MAY 18TH, WE OPENED UTILITY BILLING TO THE INSIDE OF THE BUILDING FOR UTILITY BILLING.
WE'RE ALSO PROVIDING CURBSIDE SERVICE FOR UTILITY BILLING.
SO WE'RE REALLY WANT TO MAKE THAT AS CUSTOMER FRIENDLY AS POSSIBLE.
ALSO, WE HAVE OPEN BUILDING SAFETY TO THE PUBLIC.
IN ALL THOSE SITUATIONS WE HAVE [INAUDIBLE] IN PLACE AND CLEAR MARKINGS ON THE FLOOR FOR SOCIAL DISTANCING AND SPACING BETWEEN PEOPLE THAT ARE QUEUING IN LINE AND WITH THE REST OF OUR ORGANIZATION.
WE ARE ACCEPTING APPOINTMENTS, BUT YOU HAVE TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT TO HAVE A FACE TO FACE MEETING BECAUSE MOST OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT WE CAN DO WITH THOSE FUNCTIONS IN THOSE SPACES DON'T HAVE A VERY LARGE WAITING PERIOD.
SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE QUEUING IN THE WAITING ROOM OR IN THE RECEPTION AREA TO WAIT FOR A FACE TO FACE MEETING.
SO, WE'RE SETTING UP APPOINTMENTS FOR THOSE.
WE'RE ALSO CONTINUING TO PROVIDE THOSE SERVICES VIRTUALLY VIA PHONE, EMAIL, INTERNET, OR SOMETIMES WE HAVE A ONLINE SYSTEM WHERE YOU CAN CONDUCT BUSINESS.
SO CITY FACILITIES ARE OPEN, BUT WITH THE EXCEPTION OF BUILDING SAFETY AND UTILITY BILLING, THEY'RE NOT OPEN FOR WALK IN CUSTOMERS.
CITY MANAGER, I WOULD LIKE FOR US TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE WARFORD CENTER AND HAVE MICHAEL KIND OF SHARE, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE HOURS OF OPERATION.
AND, YOU KNOW WHAT THE SENIORS ARE DOING AND WHAT THE KIDS ARE DOING.
JUST KIND OF PUT SOME FACTUAL INFORMATION OUT THERE.
YOU KNOW, IN RELATIONSHIP TO COVID-19.
ABSOLUTELY. AND I'M GOING TO HAVE KEVIN JUMP IN AND GET SOME OF THAT INFORMATION OR IF WE HAVE MICHAEL JUMPING ON IT, BUT I JUST WANT TO SAY ONE OF THE THE WARFORD CENTER, YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD CONCERNS EXPRESSED ABOUT WHY ARE YOU OPENING THE GYM? WHY ARE YOU OPENING THE POOL? WHY ARE YOU OPENING THE FACILITY AT ALL? IT IS CONSISTENT WITH ALL GUIDANCE FROM OUR HEALTH DISTRICT HEALTH AUTHORITY, OUR PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT, THE CDC.
THE WAY WE'RE OPERATING IT IS WITH THE BEST PRACTICES FOR MAINTAINING SOCIAL DISTANCING.
THE PRIMARY REASON THAT WE'RE NOT OPENING OUR POOLS THIS SUMMER IS NOT BECAUSE WE THINK WE CAN'T MANAGE SOCIAL DISTANCING AT THE POOLS.
IT'S BECAUSE IT'S A FINANCIAL ISSUE.
WE'VE HAD A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON REVENUES DUE TO REDUCED BUSINESS ACTIVITY IN THE COMMUNITY. SO WE HAD TO FIND A WAY IN THE GENERAL FUND TO SAVE AS MUCH MONEY AS POSSIBLE.
ONE OF THE AREAS THAT WAS GOING TO BE VERY EXPENSIVE AND ACTUALLY QUITE PROBLEMATIC TO OPEN IS THE POOLS BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE LIFEGUARDS ON STAFF BECAUSE THE TRAINING FACILITIES THAT CERTIFIED THOSE LIFEGUARDS ARE NOT OPERATING RIGHT NOW.
IT WOULD TAKE SOME TIME TO BE ABLE TO GET THEM CERTIFIED AND GET THOSE POOLS UP AND RUNNING. THEN WE HAVE VERY LITTLE, VERY SMALL PART OF THE SUMMER AVAILABLE TO US.
YOU HAVE TO GO THROUGH ALL OF THE STARTUP COSTS AND ALL OF THE WINTERIZING COSTS TO GET VERY LITTLE BENEFIT FOR OUR COMMUNITY AND CERTAINLY WITH A LOT OF COSTS TO OUR
[00:55:02]
COMMUNITY. SO THAT'S THE REASON WHY THE OUTDOOR POOLS AREN'T OPENING.THE WARFORD CENTER, ON THE OTHER HAND, IS OPEN ALL YEAR ROUND.
SO THE COST TO US TO BRING ON THE LIFEGUARDS, TO GET THEM CERTIFIED DOESN'T EXIST.
THEY'RE ALREADY THERE. SO THEY'RE ALREADY DOING POOL OPERATIONS AT THE POINT IN TIME WHERE CORONADO. THAT'S DIFFERENT FROM THE REST OF OUR POOLS.
NOW, WE DID CLOSE DOWN THE WARFORD CENTER.
WE DID OBVIOUSLY SHUT DOWN THE GYM AREA AND WE SHUT DOWN THE POOL AREA FOR CUSTOMER USE.
BUT THOSE THINGS WERE STILL MAINTAINED IN THE OPERATIONAL FORM.
SO THEY WEREN'T SHUT DOWN AND THEY WEREN'T WINTERIZED.
THEY WERE JUST NOT ALLOWING GUESTS TO USE THEM.
SO THERE'S A BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE WARFORD CENTER AND ALL OF THE OTHER POOLS.
IT HAS ALL OF THE ASSETS, NECESSARILY, HUMAN AND OTHER, TO MAINTAIN EFFECTIVE OPERATIONS.
I SEE WE'VE GOT MICHAEL KASHUBA ON LINE.
IF YOU CAN GIVE US A LITTLE MORE DETAIL ABOUT SOME OF THE MEASURES THAT ARE IN PLACE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE FOLLOWING ALL THE BEST PRACTICES AND THAT THERE'S NOTHING UNTOWARD GOING ON AT WARFORD MICHAEL.
ABSOLUTELY. SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE DONE IS DEVELOPED A PLAN TO REOPEN [INAUDIBLE], OBVIOUSLY, THAT THE PRIMARY THING IS TRAINING FOR STAFF, MAKING SURE THAT THEY UNDERSTAND APPROPRIATELY CLEANING, DISINFECTION, HYGIENE, RESPIRATORY ETIQUETTE.
AND SO WE'VE BEEN DOING THAT TRAINING OUR STAFF.
I THINK ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS IS JUST THE PROTECTION OF PEOPLE COMING INTO THE FACILITY. SO WE'VE SET OUT DISINFECTANT AND SANITIZING STATIONS [INAUDIBLE], THAT INCLUDES SPRAY SANITIZERS, DISINFECTANT WIPES, AND THOSE ARE AVAILABLE AT THE FRONT OF THE FACILITY, THE GYM DOOR WEIGHT ROOMS AND ALSO WITHIN OUR RENTAL SPACES.
CURRENTLY, WE ARE NOT DOING RENTALS.
WE'RE TRYING TO REDUCE CONGREGATION OF PEOPLE WITHIN THE FACILITY.
BUT WE DO HAVE SANITATION ITEMS IN THOSE PLACES.
WE'VE PUT UP SIGNAGE THROUGHOUT THE FACILITY TO REMIND PEOPLE OF THE STANDARD HEALTH PROTOCOLS AND ALSO AREAS THAT REMAIN CLOSED.
OBVIOUSLY, WITH GYMS OPENING, THE GOVERNOR DID SPECIFICALLY SAY THAT LOCKER ROOMS WERE TO REMAIN CLOSED. AND SO WE'VE KEPT THOSE FACILITIES CLOSED.
WE'VE ALSO TAPED OFF AND PUT SOME OF THE EQUIPMENT OUT OF USE TEMPORARILY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'VE GOT GOOD SOCIAL DISTANCING BETWEEN PIECES OF EQUIPMENT.
WHEN PEOPLE USE THE WEIGHT ROOM, THEY ARE REQUIRED BY THE GOVERNOR'S ORDERS TO USE GLOVES AT ALL TIMES AND TO WIPE IT DOWN AND USE STANDARD SANITIZATION MEASURES.
SO WIPING DOWN THE EQUIPMENT BEFORE AND AFTER.
ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING IS TRYING TO LIMIT THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE.
TYPICALLY, THE WARFORD ACTIVITY CENTER SEES A HIGH NUMBER OF PICKLEBALL PARTICIPANTS IN THE MORNING. AND SO WE'RE REQUIRING THAT THOSE PEOPLE CALL AHEAD AND BASICALLY DO A RESERVATION SO THAT WE'RE NOT HAVING LARGE GROUPS OF PEOPLE SHOW UP AT ONE PARTICULAR TIME, THE SAME THING. WE'RE NOT ALLOWING JUST OPEN COURT BASKETBALL WHERE WE'VE GOT LARGE GROUPS OF PEOPLE CONGREGATING.
AGAIN, WE'RE FOLLOWING ALL OF THE GOVERNOR'S ORDERS AND TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT IT IS THIS SAFEST FACILITY POSSIBLE.
AS IT RELATES TO THE POOL, WE'VE BEEN FOLLOWING THE CDC GUIDELINES.
AND ACCORDING TO THE CDC, THERE IS NO EVIDENCE THAT THE VIRUS CAN BE SPREAD.
OBVIOUSLY, THERE ARE CHEMICALS IN THE FALL THAT HELP INACTIVATE THOSE TYPES OF VIRUSES.
SO LIFEGUARDS WILL BE ON SITE AND WE'LL BE MONITORING THE.
IN OTHER AREAS, JUST TO MAKE SURE WE DON'T GO OVER CAPACITY.
MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE PARTICIPANTS AND PEOPLE USING THE FACILITY ARE FOLLOWING THE GUIDELINES. IF THERE ARE AREAS WHERE WE SEE SAFETY CONCERNS, OBVIOUSLY WE WILL ADDRESS THOSE AND MAKE PLANS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE FACILITY STAYS SAFE.
OUR STAFF HAS GONE THROUGH AND DEVELOPED CAPACITIES FOR EACH AREA WITHIN THE FACILITY, AND THEY'LL BE DOING CHECKS EVERY HALF HOUR, WALKING AROUND THE FACILITY, MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE NOT EXCEEDING THOSE CAPACITIES.
SO THOSE ARE THINGS LIKE THE WEIGHT ROOM, THE GYM.
OBVIOUSLY, THOSE OTHER SPACES, THE POOL.
THE GOAL IS JUST TO MAKE SURE IT'S THE SAFEST ENVIRONMENT POSSIBLE.
QUESTIONS COUNCIL FOR MICHAEL? MICHAEL, IS THERE A TIME SET ASIDE MAYBE FOR I GUESS THEY'RE STILL DOING WATER AEROBICS FOR SENIORS.
DO THEY HAVE A SET TIME WHEN THEY COME, AND IS THERE A SET TIME FOR KIDS TO [INAUDIBLE] THE POOL OR HOW IS IT THAT CURRENTLY? CURRENTLY, WE ARE JUST USING OUR NORMAL HOURS OF OPERATION? WE HAVE NOT INSTITUTED SWIM LESSONS.
WE'RE WAITING FOR A LITTLE BIT FURTHER IN THE PROCESS AND A LITTLE BIT MORE DIRECTION FROM THE GOVERNOR. BUT RIGHT NOW IT'S BASICALLY OPEN SWIM.
SO. WE'RE ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO DO THINGS LIKE LAP SWIMMING.
WE WILL START TO LOOK AT BRINGING BACK THINGS LIKE WATER AEROBICS AND ENCOURAGING PEOPLE
[01:00:03]
TO DO THAT. BUT RIGHT NOW, OUR NORMAL HOURS OF OPERATION ARE 6:00 A.M.- 9:00 P.M., MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY, SIX A.M.
TO SEVEN P.M. ON FRIDAY, EIGHT A.M.
- SIX P.M. ON SATURDAY AND 12:00 TO 5:00 ON SUNDAY.
AGAIN, WE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR AND OBVIOUSLY MAKE SURE THAT THOSE PROGRAMS ARE SAFE AND THAT PARTICIPANTS IN THOSE PROGRAMS ARE SAFE AS WELL AND THEY'RE OBSERVING THOSE SIX FOOT SOCIAL DISTANCING. AND SO, MICHAEL, WHO IS REQUIRED TO WHERE MASKS? WHAT WE ARE REQUIRING AND ENCOURAGING IS STAFF TO WEAR MASKS WHEN THEY'RE AROUND PEOPLE IN THE FACILITY. PER THE GOVERNOR'S ORDER, IT'S NOT MANDATED, BUT WE ARE HIGHLY ENCOURAGING IT, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU'RE IN CLOSE PROXIMITY WITH OTHER INDIVIDUALS WITHIN THE FACILITY.
SO IT'S NOT A MANDATE, BUT WE ARE HIGHLY ENCOURAGING IT.
SO, MICHAEL, TO JUST CLARIFY AGAIN THAT POOLS ALL ACROSS THE STATE ARE OPENING INDOOR-OUTDOOR. THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE IN THE SAFETY ISSUES, WHETHER IT'S AN INDOOR POOL OR AN OUTDOOR POOL.
ONE IS NOT RISKIER OR LESS RISKY THAN THE OTHER.
THERE ARE NO CASES THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS TRANSMISSION THROUGH A POOL.
AND IN FACT, YOU KNOW, HEARING YOU DESCRIBE IT, WHEN YOU THINK OF THE CHEMICALS THAT ARE ACTUALLY IN THERE, IT IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE LEAST CONTAGIOUS AREAS POSSIBLY.
AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S PEOPLE MAKE DECISIONS FOR THEMSELVES PERSONALLY WHETHER TO GO OUT AT ALL, WHETHER TO GO TO A POOL, WHETHER TO GO TO THE GYM.
THOSE ARE VERY PERSONAL DECISIONS.
WHAT ONE INDIVIDUAL SEES AS HIGH RISK, AS ANOTHER PERSON WILL SEE AS LOW RISK, BUT WE'RE ALLOWING INDIVIDUALS TO MAKE THOSE CHOICES.
AND I JUST WANT TO BE SURE THAT PEOPLE HAVE THAT DATA.
WHEN WE LOOK AT LOCALLY, OUR MORTALITY RATE FOR INDIVIDUAL AGE 40 OR LESS.
WE HAVE HAD UNLESS THERE WAS ANOTHER REPORT THIS MORNING, WE'VE HAD ONE DEATH AGE 40 OR LESS. AND SO OUT OF OUR 2274 CASES, WE'RE LOOKING AT A MORTALITY RATE OF POINT O' O' THREE SIX IN THOSE LOWER AGE GROUPS.
AND SO ALLOWING OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR KIDS TO HAVE SOME CHANCES, TO HAVE SOME ACTIVITIES.
I APPRECIATE YOU GUYS DOING ALL THE EXTRA WORK.
ALL THE EXTRA SANITATION, ALL THE EXTRA REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE BEING MANDATED RIGHT NOW TO HAVE THAT OPPORTUNITY FOR PEOPLE TO GET OUT AND HAVE EXERCISE AND A CHANGE OF SCENERY.
THERE'S NOTHING THAT WE'VE SEEN THAT WOULD INDICATE THAT INDOOR OR OUTDOOR [INAUDIBLE].
OUR GOAL AS STAFF IS TO MAKE SURE IT'S THE SAFEST FACILITY FOR ANYBODY THAT VISITS IT.
OBVIOUSLY, WE'RE GOING TO TAKE EXTRA PRECAUTIONS MAKING SURE THOSE HIGH TOUCH AREAS ARE EXTREMELY SANITIZED AND THAT EVERYBODY IS FOLLOWING SOCIAL DISTANCE.
WE WANT TO MAKE SURE IT'S A SAFE ENVIRONMENT FOR THOSE THAT CHOOSE TO USE THE FACILITY.
WHICH IS NO DIFFERENT THAN ANY DAY THAT WE OPEN AN OPERATION.
WHETHER THAT BE KEEPING STAIRS CLEAN AND DRY AT CITY HALL OR THINGS AT THE CIVIC CENTER OR ANYTHING AT THE PARK OR SO, YOU GUYS DO AN EXCELLENT JOB OF THAT.
THAT IS A TOP PRIORITY EVERY TIME WE HAVE AN ACTIVITY OR A BUILDING OPEN.
COUNCIL MEMBER POWELL, ANYTHING ELSE ON THAT? NO, MA'AM.
THANK YOU. OK, THEN COUNCIL, ANY OTHER GENERAL QUESTIONS ABOUT COVID? THE CITY'S RESPONSE TO IT? [INAUDIBLE] OF OUR AGENDA HERE, JUST OTHER THAN YOUR GENERAL QUESTIONS.
MAYOR, I THINK THE CITY MANAGER ADDRESSED JUST ONE OF THE ISSUES WITH FINANCIAL REVENUE AND KIND OF WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW.
IF WE COULD GET A QUICK UPDATE ON OUR MOST RECENT NUMBERS FROM THE CITY MANAGER OR FROM ANDREW ON KIND OF WHERE WE'RE LOOKING RIGHT NOW ON SALES TAX COLLECTIONS AND HOT COLLECTIONS FOR SURE.
WE'LL HAVE A VERY DETAILED REPORT FOR YOU ON FRIDAY.
WELL, THIS WEEK, LATER THIS WEEK, WE'LL ALSO BE PREPARED TO GIVE YOU MORE INFORMATION ON TUESDAY. WHAT I CAN SAY RIGHT NOW IS THAT OUR PROJECTIONS, WE BUILT THEM TO BE CONSERVATIVE. WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE WERE SAVING MORE MONEY THAN WE NEEDED TO OR REDUCING EXPENDITURES MORE THAN WE NEEDED TO AS POSSIBLE.
[01:05:01]
NOW, A LOT OF THAT WAS THROUGH DEFERRED CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS.SO IT'S NOT A SUSTAINABLE WAY OF REDUCING EXPENDITURES, BUT IT IS SOMETHING WE CAN DO IN AN EMERGENCY POSTURE LIKE WE ASSUMED IMMEDIATELY AFTER CORONADO VIRUS BECAME KNOWN IN THE STATES. BUT WE ARE PERFORMING BETTER THAN PROJECTED ON SALES TAXES, SIGNIFICANTLY BETTER.
SO I AM HOPEFUL THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO WEATHER THIS VERY WELL AND BE ABLE TO PLAN FOR THE TWENTY TWENTY ONE BUDGET WITH MINIMAL REDUCTIONS IN SERVICES GOING FORWARD.
BUT THERE ARE GOING TO BE REDUCTIONS IN SERVICES.
ALL OF THE FORECASTING SHOWS TO EXPECT REDUCED REVENUES IN 2021, BUT WE'LL HAVE SOME VERY DETAILED UPDATES OF HOW ARE PERFORMING SO FAR BY THIS WEEKEND.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COUNCIL? OK, WITH THAT THEN WE'LL MOVE TO THE LAST ITEM ON OUR AGENDA, WHICH IS JUST TO REQUEST ANY
[B. Request future agenda items and reports from City Manager.]
REPORTS OR ANY OTHER INFORMATION PERHAPS TO LAND ON NEXT WEEK'S AGENDA.OBVIOUSLY, THAT ONE, ELAINE, IS VERY IMPORTANT.
WE'LL BE READY FOR THAT AND WE'LL GET TO THAT INFORMATION BEFORE THEN.
AND ALSO, ELAINE, I THINK YOU HAD ASKED LAST WEEK ABOUT ANALYTICS AND STEPHANIE HAS THAT DATA THAT SHE CAN PUSH OUT TO YOU ON, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE OUR NUMBERS DOING ON PEOPLE WATCHING COUNCIL MEETINGS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
AND THAT'LL BE GREAT. WE ACTUALLY FLASHED THOSE UP ON THE SCREEN BUT WE NEED TO HOLD OFF UNTIL TUESDAY ON THOSE WHEN WE CAN HAVE MORE CLEAR ITEM ON THE AGENDA.
BUT WE'LL PUSH THAT INFORMATION OUT TO COUNCIL BEFOREHAND.
SO YOU'VE GOT IT. YOU CAN DIGEST A LITTLE BIT BEFORE WE GET TO THE COUNCIL MEETING ON TUESDAY. ALL RIGHT, I'M NOT HEARING ANYTHING TO ADD, SO I THINK OUR COUNCIL MEETING IS ADJOURNED TODAY. I APPRECIATE ALL OF YOUR SERVICE AND THANK YOU FOR MAKING TIME TO BE WITH US TODAY. THANK Y'ALL.
BYE.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.