 Okay. Hello and welcome everybody to our community chat for Thursday, May 21st. Thank you all for joining us today. Just want to mention we are continuing our live community chats every Thursday at noon for the next couple of weeks. As a reminder, this webinar is being recorded in this chat to ask a question from the Zoom application. Please click the Q&A button or raise your hand. If you're joining us from a telephone, please press star nine. Just a quick reminder here, all non-public safety-related town services will be closed Monday, May 25th in honor of Memorial Day. So today we have Public Health Director Julie Federmann joining the town manager, Paul Balkaman and myself. Welcome to you both. Nice to see you. Good to see you again. Any updates for folks before we allow time for Q&A? Sure. So this is a big week. Everyone was pointing to Monday, May 18th, which was, you know, when the governor was going to announce all the re-openings and it was somewhat kind of informative, but there were a lot of unanswered questions. So we can answer any of the questions you have for us today. But there was some, it did, to me, sort of mark a pivot towards how do we start to re-open as opposed to how do we stay closed down. And I think that that's a very careful path that we have to watch, that we have to walk. So I want to be very careful about that. So we can talk more about that as we move forward. Julie? Yeah. Thank you, Paul. I think I will echo that we want to be very careful. I think everyone was really anticipating the date of May 18th. And I think I'm hearing some confusions out there, some concerns, some excitement. So one thing that I wanted to say is that so certain things are going to be opening up in phase one. And then as we've heard a little later in phase two, but some of the things that we've been doing for months and months now, we still need to continue to do. And I think balancing that with these sort of like new freedoms of being able to go to your house of worship or have some construction happening and other things that it will be coming, it's still really important for people to be wearing their face masks. So the goal is still social distancing. So staying home when you can, going out to do some of these new things, but being careful and mindful of keeping your six foot distance and always having a mask with you so that you're wearing a mask when you're going into an establishment that you are wearing a mask in the grocery store. And remembering to do that even when you're out on a crowded sidewalk and you're with other people. The other thing I wanted to address is that this is of course coinciding with Memorial Day weekend. And summer is still here. Beautiful weather has arrived and we all really want to enjoy it. I want to put the emphasis on, you know, the beautiful weather and being able to be outside and being able to recreate and go for walks and take bike rides. Traditionally people like to get together over Memorial Day weekend and we're still, we're still saying that getting together with other people is really not safe. You want to have the six foot distance, there is the less than 10 people is as a group is still in effect. And I think one of the things I've been hearing from folks is that with this new change of things opening up a little bit, the kind of responsibility becomes even more individual to really be trying to do the right thing. Because it feels a little confusing to think, oh, well, I can go to the beach, I just have to social distance. Does that mean things are have all changed? And so just recognizing that it's going to be hard to say, no, I really can't come to your house and hang out in the backyard backyard with 20 people. Or, you know, I know it's the holiday, but you know, I'm, I'm still going to be sticking to my routine here, which is keeping the social distancing. So just wanted to put that out there for folks, because I think it's, it's hard. Everyone's been doing this for a really long time. I've been doing a great job, but it's hard. Thank you, Julie. I kind of, we have a one of our first questions kind of jumps off of what you just said. You're thinking about warm weather. We've gotten this a couple of times now. Is Puffer's Pond open or closed? It seems like people are there, but the signs are saying it's closed. So what's the deal with Puffer's Pond right now? For either of you. Paul, I'm good. Paul, I think I'll let you go into the details on that. You must be, you might be most up to date. So, so it's a good question. We did put, because that question does come up a lot. We put out a sort of advisory on that. So Puffer's Pond is closed. It is available for people who are walking through or if you're fishing, but there isn't a, the beach itself is closed for people who want to just lay around and enjoy the sun. It's not the place for that. And I think that, you know, that's basically it. It's just, it's closed. We're monitoring on a daily basis. We have police officers up there periodically to ensure that people aren't sort of settling down. We may take additional steps in terms of regulating parking because there are new guidance that just came out this week from the state on how they're managing their beaches and their public areas like that. So it's, we don't, we haven't settled on exactly how we're going to be doing it, but in the meantime, we are going to have enforcement officers up there. And I guess the only other thing that we put out in that release is that we are actively working on a plan to make it the most possibly the safest environment if and when things do reopen at the beach. And just one other thing. People should not be swimming. I, you know, I think we all, there was a couple of years ago where a young man went swimming at this time of year and it didn't survive. And it wasn't because, it's just because the water is still so cold. So even though it's going to be 85 degrees tomorrow, it's the water is really cold and you cramp up before you know it and just ask people, please don't try to swim at this time of year. Okay. So we got a question that just came in asking, will there be a parade or ceremony on Memorial Day? So the vet, our vet director of veteran services has been working with our veterans organizations to organize something virtually. They're putting together a virtual program that will be broadcast out. I know that the town council passed a resolution on Monday. And they all sort of commented on it at that time. It's not a time to be encouraging gatherings of people, especially older veterans who are the ones who are most likely to show up unfortunately, but they're the one, but it's, they're the people who've been most dedicated. So while the flay flag will be raised and lowered as required, there won't be a formal ceremony of any sort. And we will not be encouraging anyone to come to town, to the town common to observe that it will be done. There is the director of veteran services has is preparing or has prepared a video type presentation for everybody to watch. And we will share that out once we have it available on all our communication channels. So I just want to remind the new folks who've just joined into the room, feel free to put your questions into the Q&A button or raise your hand to ask your question live. If you're on the phone, press star nine to raise your hand. Okay. So this question is not from me, but asking for a friend. Can I get my hair done now? And who gets to say if they are allowed to open or not? So I'll take that one. That's a great question. I know that a lot of people are wanting to do that. And so the governor has said that May 25th, that hair establishments may open. So that's next week. And so we have heard from some establishments that are, you know, looking for guidance to make sure they're going to be opening in the correct way. The governor has created guidelines for every type of sector that's reopening. So those guidelines are available to businesses, businesses can also contact inspection services to get more assistance if they feel like they need to know more about how to open safely. But beginning May 25th, businesses that choose to be open may be open. And they don't, they don't have to come into town hall to get a permit or anything, right? They can just, right, self-certified. Yes. There's a, there's a self attestation checklist. You said it. Yeah, we're starting to learn that word. Paul and I haven't. So what that is, is that every business is going to have this document and it sort of takes them through what they need to do in order to open safely. And so that's sort of their guidance tool and also their checklist to really make it sort of operational. Again, we are hearing from businesses that want some additional help with, with how to do this right. And so we're very happy to give people advice if that's what they need. And if anybody wants to, to look at those documents, we have them in a news item on the bottom of our homepage, as well as on amherstma.gov slash reopen. You can see all the industry or sector specific checklists there as well. We get this question at least once or twice a week. So I'll put it out there again. If I see someone who isn't wearing a mask, what should I do? Well, I think the mask has really come to a symbolize a lot for folks. I mean, I think one thing that people need to remember is that some people aren't able to wear a mask because of some type of health condition that you can't see and that you're not aware of. So I think that if you're not comfortable being near someone who doesn't have a mask on, then, which is appropriate, then you keep your six foot distance. I mean, really, again, what we're looking for is the social distancing, the six feet. The mask is for when that is really hard to do. So I think if you see someone without a mask, I would assume positive intent. I would assume that that person is not able to wear a mask. We're not looking for people to be saying to other people, where's your mask? We have a follow-up question on, again, some of the reopening plans. This person says it seems kind of confusing. What is allowed to open and what has to stay closed? Well, I think it's hard to list out all the things that have to stay closed. So I think if we stay with anything that has been allowed to be open at this point, so examples of that are food establishments that provide curbside pickup or delivery. Garden stores that sell any kind of vegetable plant can be open. So there are these businesses, these what are deemed essential businesses that have been open right along. Now, what the governor is saying is he's got phase one. And in phase one, some things were allowed to open this Monday and some next Monday. So this Monday was construction, firearms, houses of worship. I feel like I'm forgetting one thing, manufacturing, small manufacturing or large manufacturing. So that's what could open starting this Monday, the 18th. Next Monday, the 25th, what can open is a variety of things which are listed on those websites that Breanna listed. But some of them are car washes, hair places, barbers, offices. So offices have guidance for how they can reopen on the 25th. Yeah, so those are some of the main things. I think it's really, you know, for instance, drive ins, but we don't have a drive in in Amherst. So I think going to look at that list is really helpful. And there's a follow up question. Is a hair salon free to offer its other services? For example, manicures. Good question. No, it's just hair services. Another question from the room. Where can I get tested in the Amherst area? I do not have COVID-19. I just want to know my status before reuniting with my family and grandchildren. Great question. Yeah, great question. So right now, CVS in Northampton has a drive up testing system. So if you go, if you log on to CVS.com in Northampton, you can sign up, then you drive up to the drive up window in CVS and they give you a little swab kit. And you swab, I don't know if it's your note the front of your nose or your mouth, but nothing deep. And you put it back in an envelope and they send it to a lab. And results come back within it's one to two days. So you can go to CVS.com. I'm not promoting a business here. I am promoting a testing site that we have. If for some reason you felt like you've had some exposure, of course you contact your healthcare provider and you talk that through with them because Cooley Dickinson is also doing drive through testing. But that would only be for someone who had actually had an exposure. Great. Thank you. So we had a question that came in via email to the group prior to the session today. So I'm going to read that question now. A little context to the question. Since UMass's pending decision regarding its fall semester has a direct impact on the health and safety of local residents, what is the town doing to ensure the decision UMass makes does not put Amherst residents at unnecessary risk? And are town officials included in the ongoing discussions presently going on at the university level? Yeah, that's a it's a concern of ours that when we talk about that with our internal group, we have regular conversations with the university at a certain level. We are not engaged with the university and conversations about whether they will open or not. That is not happening at any conversations with the town about that. We understand the implications of the college's opening in the university. We will stay engaged with them as they start to implement it. They're very good at communicating what they're going to do to us. But they're not consulting with us to say should we do these things or not. I think that's actually happening. Those kinds of conversations are happening at a very high level probably at the gubernatorial level, in fact. But that's just my speculation. So yes, I think that whatever they decide will have an impact on the town and we want to be aware of that and we will be prepared for it. Great, thank you. Another question is this person saying people in their circle feel like this thing is over and they're ready to go back to normal. They're wondering what they can say in response to that or what they can do in response to that? I think that's a very good question. I think that's coming up a lot. So I think one way to look at this is one of the goals was to flatten that curve. Remember we were always talking about the curve? So one of the ways that the state has decided that it's time to cautiously start reopening is that curve. So just to remind folks that curve is partly about the concept of overwhelming the healthcare system. So at this point as they look at the populations who are in the hospitals at the number of ICU beds available, at the number of positive test results and overall censuses in the hospital, they see a trend downward. So we are seeing less positive cases. We're seeing the ICUs start to have beds open up. And so this is the criteria that's been used. But I do think it's worth mentioning that a lot of this has happened because people have stayed home. And that's why I was being so cautious in the beginning about the fact that we still have to keep doing what we've been doing. Social distancing, mask wearing, this all becomes even more important as people do go out more and take advantage of various services and businesses. The other thing I want to say is that so the governor is calling this this period of time safer at home. So part of that is that his recommendation is that people over the age of 65 should be staying home. And so I think that while people can go out and can participate in things, it's really important that people not think this is over at all. This is an opportunity for people to be able to get back to work, to start utilizing more businesses. It's not about this being over. I just want to add something because the peak is usually the halfway point. It's not the end. It's the halfway point. It's like half time of a football game. We all remember the Atlanta Falcon doing the Patriot game. It was 28 to three. But that means like we've had 6,000 deaths in the state in the first half of this. So that means we have another 6,000 as we climb down this mountain. So that means there's thousands of people who will still get infected. There'll be thousands of people who have to be entered into ICU. It's not like an end. It's just that we have now we're starting to go down a little bit. But there's still a large number of people who are going to be under the second half of the curve who are going to be impacted. So as much work as we did on the first half, we have to keep doing it on the second half. And that's the biggest challenge because I think mentally, especially with the weather changing, people are thinking, oh, I'm done. And I'm sick of doing this. And it's just the thing that we have to, this is the hardest, hardest part right now is to be disciplined to keep doing the things that we've been doing. And you start reading it in other states that have opened up. And then suddenly they're ticking up two weeks later. We don't want to do that here. So I've got a question, suggestion slash comment from one of our attendees. Can the town hang signs, banners, et cetera around town, promoting social distancing and mask wearing? Not everyone gets the town's email alerts. Yeah, that's an interesting idea. Let's ponder on that. We'll figure that out. I think there's a lot of knowledge in the community about social distancing. I think what will be more important is as businesses start to open up for retail, that point of service communication is going to be more important than generic signs on the billboards or something like saying promote social distancing. I don't think we can have much of an impact as a town, but in a micro level, for instance, when the council approved the opening of the farmers market and they intend to open on May 30th, one of their big concerns was having adequate signage at the farmers market to make sure people understand the rules going in there, that you have to have a mask to be able to enter, that you can't bring a pet with you because it's not a social event. It's a transaction to purchase farmers goods. So that point of sale information is where we'd want to put our effort on that. Absolutely. I just want to remind people to ask their questions via Q&A or raise your hand. While we wait for another question, I was asked to share this notice of a public hearing next Wednesday, May 27th regarding Community Development Block Grant Advisory Committee CARES Act funding. Amherst is eligible to apply for up to $400,000 for assistance programs and public social services. So just want to put that out in the airwaves. There will be a public hearing next Wednesday at 4 p.m. virtually. All of this information is on our website, but you can hear activity proposals from agencies and organizations or add additional comments about how the CARES Act funding is spent in our community. I'd like to add something on a similar note. On Monday, the staff coming from our Building Commissioner and Planning Director and staff presented a really innovative proposal to the Town Council that would add a new section to the Zoning By-law that would last for about six months that would allow restaurants to relax the zoning so that restaurants could open up and utilize outdoor seating areas a lot more, a lot very much quicker than they normally would under our normal zoning by-law. This would give them an answer within 10 days once they put in their application. And this would allow some seating on sidewalks and things like that. It's carte blanche. They would have to go through a review process, but it would be a staff review versus a committee review process, which makes things go much quicker because there isn't the posting requirements and things that committees have to live with. So I don't think anybody else in the state has done something like this. Our town attorney who represents hundreds of communities said they've never seen it. So this is very innovative. It's a really a pro business trying to get our restaurants specifically to open up. And it might be a restaurant that has a parking lot in front of them. They can use that for outdoor seating, properly social distancing. It might be that we are able to use some rights of way, either sidewalks or even carving out some space on the street to allow people to sit. So we have a lot of interest from our businesses and it's really exciting. The council will go through this. So they have to do a public hearing and there's a 14-day notice period. So those things we're all complied with, but we think early June the council is very eager to move on this. All right. So I'm not seeing any additional questions and we are coming up to our 30 minutes. So I would love if either of you had any last comments or words or calls to action to share. Now's the time. Calls to action. I like that. I have a call to action. So just to remind folks that we're really looking for either donations of handcloth masks or materials to make those masks. There you go. Then we can put them in Ziploc bags, deliver them to families, to individuals, to folks who don't have access to getting masks. And we need sewers. So there it and this is Brianna's Cube. She will say where you can email about this, I think. Yes. So you can sign up online to either request a mask to volunteer to be a sewer or to donate materials at amherstma.gov slash get involved. You can also call the town manager's office at 413-259-3002. We have had many more requests than we have available masks. So we've luckily had some great sewers dropping things off as they become available. And a business has donated to us, reached out to us from the state of Texas and sent us some masks that they've flipped to manufacturing. So if you know of any businesses that are doing buy one, donate one to a cause, we'd love to be that cause. Yeah. So amherstma.gov slash get involved or the town manager's office, you can call anytime. Anything else from you, Paul? No, I think that's great. It's Memorial Day, so I hope people have an enjoyable weekend and remember our veterans. A lot of us have family who've been veterans and it is a member. It's an important time. Absolutely. And one last thing before we go, there's district meetings happening all remotely. So for those of you who want to join and meet up with your district counselors tonight at 6.30 will be district two, which is my district. I'll see you there. And then next week, we have districts one, three and five meeting and all of this information is on our website on the homepage. All right. We'll stay safe. Thank you all for joining us. Thank you. Thank you. Happy Memorial Day.