January 14 2021 Update

Today has been a good day - busy as always but also had a little time to get caught up on some of my priorities.  We met today with the new owners of Splash Summit Resort (the former Seven Peaks Water Park) and were pretty impressed with their vision for the facility.  Isaac and I also spent just under 2 hours in a Zoom call with other cities getting ready for the Utah Legislative Session starting next week.  Sometimes my days remind me of the old Star Trek series when they engaged the warp drive and the stars start coming fast and furious.  

But I guess we should expect that knowing everything that is going on around us.

Speaking of everything going on around us, you may have read or heard that the nation is expecting some protests associated with Inauguration Day next week, in locations around the country as well as in Washington, D.C.  The Administration and the Police Department are carefully tracking intelligence about these issues through the FBI and the State.  While we don't anticipate specific issues in Provo, we are monitoring developments and will let you know if any of that activity might impact our employees or our facilities.  Just as we did with other protests last summer, we will keep you informed and work hard to ensure our ability to stay safe and keep delivering quality services to our residents.

CORONAVIRUS STATS

Nationally, the CDC reports 22,965,957 cases with 383,351 fatalities.

Utah:  317,559 cases (up 2,742 from yesterday); 12,249 hospitalizations; 1,460 deaths (up 11 from yesterday)

Utah County:  77,715 cases (up 705 from yesterday); 2,059 hospitalizations; 240 deaths (up 2 from yesterday)

NEWS YOU CAN USE

• The House voted and successfully impeached President Trump, which makes him the only President to be impeached twice. Rep. John Curtis voted against impeachment, though he and others condemned the president's actions.
• President Trump signed a declaration Tuesday making FEMA funding available to Utah for damage during the major wind storm last year.
• Beware on your next trip to Europe, the EUFSA, Europlean Food Safety Agency, has approved yellow grubs (mealworms) to be used whole and dried in curries and other recipes and as a flour. Apparently this is the first of many insects on the docket to be added to the approval list.
• For those looking for happier news these days, here is a list of 21 things to look forward to in 2021

PROVO SOCIAL MEDIA

THE MAYOR'S DAY

Today, Mayor Kaufusi:

• Met with the Customer Service director
• Held a meeting with a concerned citizen
• Participated in a meeting to discuss Utah names
• Met with a new local business owner
• Held a meeting with representatives from local higher education institutes
• Participated in the Provo Women's Bike Summit as a panelist

FUN STUFF

So, on Tuesday, the Municipal Council will make a few amendments to one of our agreements with Google Fiber.  It is hard to believe that it has been 7 years since we began connecting customers with the Google Fiber service.  Here are a couple of the videos produced by our media services team back then to try to help Provo residents understand the difference between Google Fiber and regular old "broadband."  I appreciated the creativity of the team back then and even more so now as we find ways to communicate effectively with our residents.  So, enjoy this little blast from the past!

Have a great weekend; we will be back in the office after the holiday on Monday.  Stay safe!

Wayne