County Executive George Latimer and key members of his Operations and Economic Development team held a virtual TownHall last week with municipal
leaders and business owners bordering the State of Connecticut to discuss challenges surrounding re-opening our region.
“Our intergovernmental team and our economic development team are here to work as your partners” Latimer said. “Anywhere along the line, if you have
an idea, question, something specific on a high level policy issue, reach out to my administration to assist in anyway. We try very hard to have an open dialogue and are here to help you. We want this economy open but in a way that does not spread the virus.”
On the call, issues relating to the county’s efforts in both lobbying the state for certain measures pertaining to local Westchester businesses as well as direct action that can be taken by the county, like the Department of Health working with local businesses to develop outdoor or alternative service locations, were discussed.
To prepare for reopening,businesses in any given phase are required to document a detailed plan for a safe reopening and read the detailed guidance provided by New York State and submit an affirmation. The Mid-Hudson Region which encompasses Westchester, as well as Rockland, Orange, Putnam, Sullivan, Ulster and Dutchess counties, entered into Phase 1 of the state’s reopening process on May 26.
In order to move to Phase 2, the region must not see spikes in any of the key metrics (total hospitalizations, new hospitalizations, deaths) for 14 days since
the start of Phase 1. Additionally, the state will take some time after the 14 days to deeply analyze the metrics to ensure that there no indications of any issues prior to giving approval to enter Phase 2.
(submitted)
