May 12, 2020 Update

Welcome back.  I am multitasking again today, working in the office and participating virtually in the Council's budget retreat.  That after working with my wife Julie and planting most of my vegetable garden boxes last evening after work.

Coronavirus Statistics

Nationally:  1,324,488 cases; 79,756 fatalities
Utah:  6432 cases; 535 hospitalizations; 73 fatalities
Utah County:  1,365 cases; 80 hospitalizations; 11 fatalities

I took the liberty at trying to put the numbers in perspective.  In the United States, the rate of Covid infection is about 4 cases per 1,000 residents.  In Utah, it is about half that at 2 cases per 1,000.  In Utah County, we are a bit higher than the state as a whole at 2.3 cases per 1,000 residents.

In terms of deaths from Covid-19, the national rate is 24 deaths per 100,000 residents.  The Utah rate is 1/10th that at 2.2 deaths per 100,000 residents.  The Utah County rate is slightly less than the state at 1.8 cases per 100,000 residents.

News You Can Use

A study from Adobe Analytics suggests that Americans are not buying pants and slacks at the rate they used to, but pajama sales are skyrocketing.  Hmmm.  Just a reminder that pajamas are not business work attire when we start returning to work at the city.

Utah County has recently created a GIS map showing the incidence of cases in the county by city.  Provo currently has 334 cases since the outset of the pandemic, or about 24.4% of the total cases in the county.  Our population is about 21.4% of the county total, we have a bit more than our share based solely on population.  But being the county seat, we should probably expect more cases than our population would predict.

Provo Social Media

• Public Works has been putting a lot of emphasis on cleaning up our recycling stream.  Over 40% of all waste put into recycling cans is not recyclable.  This video is one of our latest efforts to help improve the quality of the recycling content.
• We have also been working on getting the word out about the partial reopening of the recreation center, and this video is the latest citizen outreach on the Provo Recreation Center.

The Mayor's Day

Today, the Mayor:

• Met with a resident who is trying to work with the City to restore irrigation water to his property in northeast Provo
• Met with City Attorney Robert West
• Participated in the Municipal Council's initial FY 2021 budget retreat

Fun Stuff

Lady Antebellum is one of my favorite country groups.  It is kind of a guilty music pleasure for me.  Last night on the Tonight Show, the group did a number where the three Lady Antebellum music artists individually played and sang their part and joined together for a virtual number.  It was super fun, and the song is pure country!

Have a great day, and we will be back tomorrow with more information and inspiration for these pandemic days.

Wayne