April 28, 2020 Update

Good afternoon fellow Provo team members.  It has been another very interesting day in the continuing saga of Covid-19.  We will cover some of that below.  We also had a very nice shout-out from the Daily Herald today about the daily updates, both here and in Orem as well.  Thanks to those who made nice comments about the effort at helping you stay informed and maybe even a little encouraged.

Coronavirus Stats

Nationally:  981,246 total cases with 55,258 fatalities

Utah:

Utah County:  862 cases, 42 hospitalizations, 7 fatalities

News You Can Use

• Governor Gary Herbert announced today that the state has moved from "high-risk" status to "moderate-risk" status - red to orange if you are following the Utah Leads 2.0 model starting this Friday.  This will allow some restaurants to begin limited dine-in options, will increase the maximum number in a group gathering together from 10 to 20, will still advise for 6 feet of social distancing, and require symptom checking in business environments.  Persons in high risk categories should still take the more stringent "red" precautions.
• As mentioned yesterday, the City is working on our response for the move from red to orange, including soft opening of city facilities.  These will be formally announced next Monday, May 4.
• The State also announced a "Mask for Every Utahn" initiative sponsored by the Utah Manufacturers Association and 20 manufacturers around the state.  The masks will be funded by federal stimulus money and other sources.  You can visit https://coronavirus.utah.gov/mask for more information and to requests masks for your household.  (The website has been slammed today, so just keep trying if you can't get in).

Provo Social Media

• We highlighted the Daily Herald article about the daily update blog on Facebook and Twitter (mentioned and linked above)
• The Provo Library also began curbside service this week.  We posted a short video showing how the system works.
• We also welcomed Officer Hayden Schmitt to the Provo Police Department.  Officer Schmitt comes to Provo as a lateral transfer from Arkansas.  Welcome! 

 The Mayor's Day

Today, Mayor Kaufusi:

• Met with our new economic development director Keith Morey
• Met with new employees at the end of their employee orientation
• Met with a representative of the East Bay Neighborhood
• Participated in a conference call with Lt. Governor Spencer Cox for a discussion on the Governor's announcement of changes to the state pandemic response
• Had several hours of meetings on the city budget and on our "reopening plan" for city facilities
• Talked with several residents and others about various issues of interest to them

Fun Stuff

Thanks for the fun comments about my swimming pool story yesterday.  I even got to hear some of your best stories - some that I can't share in polite company!

Finally, if you have ever heard the Holderness Family, you will appreciate the humor in this little video of Disney Songs about the Coronavirus.  Enjoy!

I will be taking a vacation day tomorrow helping a son and his family move - followed by a long soak in a hot bath!  So see you again on Thursday!

Wayne