HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/02/2021 02B Coronavirus (COVID-19) UpdateB US INE S S O F T HE C I T Y C O UNC IL
YAK I M A, WAS HI NG T O N
AG E ND A S TAT E M E NT
I tem No. 2.B .
F or Meeting of : March 2, 2021
I T E M T IT L E :Coronavirus (C O V I D-19) update
S UB M IT T E D B Y:B ob Harrison, C ity Manager
S UM M ARY E X P L ANAT IO N:
The attached memo summarizes the C ity of Yakima's local response to the C O V I D-19
emergency, declared in Yakima on March 11, 2020.
I T E M B UD G E T E D:NA
S T RAT E G I C P RIO RIT Y:
AP P RO V E D F O R S UB M I T TAL B Y T HE C IT Y M ANAG E R
RE C O M M E ND AT IO N:
AT TAC HM E NT S:
D escr iption Upload D ate Type
030221 COVID update 2/26/2021 Cover Memo
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TO: Honorable Mayor and members of the Yakima City Council
FROM: Bob Harrison, City Manager
DATE: March 2, 2021
RE: Update - COVID-19’s Effect on City Services and Finances
The COVID-19 emergency has and will continue to present many challenges. The City of
Yakima is committed to protecting the health and safety of its employees and customers, the
continuity of government services, and the responsible management of the City’s finances.
This is to provide an update to the City’s COVID response that was reviewed at the February 2,
2021 City Council meeting.
Administration:
Administration staff is working with Convention Center staff to arrange space at the Center for
vaccine distribution. One medical provider has made arrangements with the Convention Center
to offer a vaccination clinic that was to start the weekend of January 30. Another medical
provider is still considering using space at the Convention Center.
There’s been some inquiries as to when City Hall will be open to the public. Staff confirmed with
the Governor’s office that public buildings should not open until the region enters phase 2 of the
revised Healthy Washington plan. When the building does open it will be limited to 25%
occupancy. However, some of the departments are expanding some limited services that must
be done in person to appointment only.
Police:
• As we moved into Phase 2 of Washington’s Roadmap to Recovery, the Yakima
Police Department began offering additional services to community members in
Yakima. We are now accepting new Concealed Pistol License (CPL) applications
and general fingerprinting requests. The requests can be submitted online through
the website www.yakimapolice.org and are being offered by appointment only. Only
the applicant will be permitted to access the building at the time of the appointment
and a mask is required to be worn. Staff members are following necessary health
guidelines to include using personal protective equipment (PPE) and sanitizing
equipment between appointments.
• The Yakima Police Department began receiving the COVID-19 vaccine last
week. 57% of YPD employees opted to get the vaccine – which is a high number
compared to many public safety agencies around the country.
• The Yakima Police Department has now had ten COVID positive cases and three
more suspected cases. There is no evidence that the employees were infected at
work and several have already returned. However, out of an abundance of caution,
YPD worked with the Yakima Health District to ensure we were following the best
practices. The Health District sent representatives to our building and jail two days in
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a row and made some minor suggestions. It was a good collaborative exercise and
hopefully we will see cases decline.
• We are developing a plan for vaccinations. It will likely come sooner for first
responders and we want to vaccinate employees in waves (in case the side effects
limit employee activity for short periods).
• The Services Division continues to work at a Level 4 (Red) on December 22, 2020.
The following are the Services Division occurrences related to COVID-19:
o Two employees tested positive for COVID-19.
o As of December 21, 2020, all Services Division employees working at the
station were required to wear their face masks, even while working from their
desks.
o The Services Division was sprayed with disinfectant, to include the property
room, bin room, the room with the blood lockers, lunch room, and door
handles.
o All Services Division personnel received an email reminding them to practice
social distancing and avoid close contact for more than ten minutes.
o Five staff members were absent, six were telecommuting and nine staff
members were available at the station.
Fire:
• Several employees have received their second COVID vaccination within the 17 to
21 day window. Initial first dose vaccinations are becoming a little harder to schedule
so we have to check on availability before sending employees to the clinic. We are
still working with the Office of Emergency Management on first dose availability.
• The Fire Department, including SunComm employees, had a total of 53 people
volunteer to get their first COVID vaccination over the past several days.
Finance:
• NO UPDATES
• The City of Yakima was selected for monitoring by the Department of Commerce
(Commerce) for funding from the CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Funds for Local
Governments. During the monitoring process, Commerce staff worked with the city of
Yakima staff to receive fiscal documentation for review.
• The results of the review identified no issues or concerns. The documentation
received demonstrated an appropriate use of the funds according to the US Treasury
guidance. Commerce thanked the City of Yakima for assisting in this processes, and
for all we do to support our community during these challenging times.
• The CARES Act grant ended on November 30 and, with the help of the Purchasing
Division, staff has been able to submit the final drawdowns. The City will be receiving
the full $4,249,800 in grant revenues. With the grant revenues, the City was able to
help 169 small businesses and 47 non-profits (including 18 with a City relationship).
• The table below shows the different makeup of the grant proceeds.
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Public Works Admin:
• NO UPDATES
Streets:
• NO UPDATES
Refuse:
• NO UPDATES
Water / Wastewater:
• NO UPDATES
Transit:
• NO UPDATES
Engineering:
• NO UPDATES
Parks:
• All nine Tahoma Cemetery Tours have been uploaded to our Virtual Recreation
Programs page on our website. Here is the link to the Virtual Recreation Programs
page: https://yakimaparks.com/virtual-recreation-programs/
• Staff at the Harman Center has been hosting Facebook live face chats with Santa for
kids. They have also had senior citizen “Elf on the Shelf” posts daily on
Facebook. In addition, they are conducting a live chat “check in” with the seniors on
Wednesdays. They also delivered Christmas cheer cards to seniors; delivering 475
cards and mailed over 900 cards to Harman Center subscribers wishing them a
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Equipment Rental/Building Maintenance:
• NO UPDATES
Community Development/Codes/Planning/ONDS:
• NO UPDATES
Human Resources:
• NO UPDATES
Airport:
• NO UPDATES
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Communications:
• NO UPDATES
Information Technology:
• NO UPDATES
Legal Department:
• NO UPDATES
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