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Wednesday, May 13, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
City to address reopening steps
Sisters may be able
to begin <reopening= by
degrees soon, as Deschutes
County enters Phase I,
according to the State of
Oregon9s template.
On May 6, the
Deschutes County Board of
Commissioners approved
and submitted the County9s
reopening plan to the
Governor. On May 7, the
State finalized guidance for
specific sectors to reopen
if their County has been
approved to move into Phase
I reopening.
If approved, the County
would be able to move into
Phase I no earlier than May
15.
After 21 days in Phase I,
counties continuing to meet
the prerequisites may be able
to enter Phase II.
The goal is to further
expand gathering size, allow
some office work, and begin
to allow visitation to congre-
gate care.
Governor Brown stated
that Phase III concerts,
conventions, festivals, and
live audience sports will
not resume until a reliable
treatment or prevention for
COVID-19 is available. It is
unknown at this time when
this will be. Therefore, their
recommendation is that all
large gatherings should be
canceled or significantly
modified through at least
September (see related story,
page 7).
Further guidance on large
gatherings scheduled for
later in the fall will be pro-
vided this summer.
In materials provided
on the City of Sisters web-
site in preparation for the
City Council9s Wednesday,
May 13 workshop, the City
reports that:
<There is a coordinated
understanding between local
governments and chambers
of commerce/visitor9s cen-
ters that now is not the time
to be encouraging tour-
ism activity. The focus for
now should be on shop-
local initiatives and those
within Central Oregon.
Nonetheless, visitors will
come to Central Oregon and
Sisters 4 that is largely out-
side of our control.=
Going into the workshop,
City staff provided a series
of staff recommendations for
Council consideration:
Staff recommends that
City Hall remain closed to
the public with a reopening
date yet to be determined.
When City Hall reopens
staff recommends additional
safety measures for distanc-
ing and sanitation.
Creekside Campground
is recommended for opening
after Memorial Day, subject
to State and County restric-
tions. Staff has prepared a
campground reopening plan
for the Council with safety
measures included.
The City9s recycling cen-
ter could reopen on May 18
with additional safety mea-
sures in place.
The City of Sisters reports
that staff is actively work-
ing with a variety of inter-
est groups in its response to
COVID-19. This includes
proactive outreach and fol-
low-up with:
" Medium, large, and
City-wide event applicants
to learn what their plans are
regarding moving forward or
not with their event, and to
inquire about how the City
can assist if needed.
" Other municipalities and
event organizers throughout
Deschutes County to learn
how they are approaching
their safety plans.
" Researching what ser-
vices Deschutes County
Environmental Health can
provide small municipalities
who do not have the profes-
sional expertise to review
and confirm compliance
with COVID-19 protocols.
In addition, the City is
consistently working to
secure products such as por-
table hand-washing stations,
protective face masks, and
hand sanitizer. The procure-
ment of those are for the
downtown area and public
spaces, regardless of pub-
lic events while providing
for and encouraging safety
measures.
<These products are
in very high demand and
require consistent follow up
with distributors to even-
tually secure a quantity
for measured use over an
extended period of time,=
the City reports. <The goal
being by the time the City is
permitted to open and return
to some level of activity we
will have enough product
on-hand to assist the com-
munity and staff.=
The City is also consid-
ering allowing businesses
to use public right-of-way
for seating to comply with
distancing guidelines, and
offering business license fee
relief.
All of these topics will be
discussed at the Wednesday,
May 13, workshop at 5 p.m.
(see agenda, page 5). To
access meeting information,
visit https://www.ci.sisters.
or.us.
Sisters
City Situation Report
By Cory Misley
City Manager
The State of Oregon
has received a Deschutes
County plan for reopening
of the regional economy and
entering Phase One. As we
head towards that date, per-
haps as soon as Friday, May
15, pending State approval,
the City of Sisters is brain-
storming ways to continue
to support our business
community through these
tough times.
City Council members
made phone calls to doz-
ens of retail, restaurant,
and personal service busi-
nesses to hear how they
were holding up and gather
information on how the
City could help. The resolve
and resiliency of our local
businesses is inspiring. We
know reopening is critical
to keeping businesses alive,
people employed, and the
vibrancy of Sisters. The City
cares about all of our local
businesses.
It will truly be a test of
our balance to maintain
public health and prosperity
for the foreseeable future.
The key ways of preventing
COVID-19 are simple 3 yet
easier said than done. Some
of the guidelines from the
State will be challenging for
businesses to implement and
cut into revenues.
The City is identifying
and exploring ways that we
can support local businesses
achieve this balance. We
must do that for residents
and visitors alike. Summer
is right around the corner
and we hope to have sev-
eral options rolled out come
June. Many of these options
will be an experiment as we
are in uncharted waters. If
you have ideas, please con-
tact us and share so we can
explore if they are feasible
and can be implemented.
Many updates and top-
ics related to COVID-19 are
scheduled for Council dis-
cussion on the May 13 meet-
ing. The agenda and packet
information can be found at
www.ci.sisters.or.us under
<Upcoming Events.=
As always, we encourage
you to review the materials,
participate in the meetings,
and share your comments.
Thank you for your con-
tinued patience and perse-
verance through these trying
times.
Learn more at www.ci.sisters.or.us
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