from the desk of:
Tom Barwin
Sarasota City Manager
May 1, 2020
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Another busy week is almost in the books and we anticipate an even busier week ahead as we work to help our local small businesses reopen under the governor's guidelines in a safe and practical manner.
Thank you for reading this week's edition! If you have questions, comments or suggestions for topics, please contact us directly: 941-263-6402 or
CityNews@SarasotaFL.Gov
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City Commission
Mon., May 4 - 1:30 p.m.
City Hall - VideoTeleconference
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Local Public Health Emergency - Latest
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After taking into careful consideration the
Governor’s new executive order
to start reopening the state in a limited fashion, and in consultation with Mayor Jen Ahearn-Koch and City Attorney Bob Fournier and local public health professionals, the local public health emergency
has been extended
and the City Commission will consider next steps during its
regular meeting Monday, May 4
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Reopening Businesses
Over the past several weeks, while tracking the number of positive COVID-19 cases in the city limits and talking with local public health experts, City staff simultaneously has been contemplating how to safely enter the economic recovery phase.
We want to help small businesses make their reopening as simple and safe as possible. To that end, today's extension of the emergency order relaxes some Zoning Code requirements to explore the possibility for more outdoor dining options.
Requirements that may be temporarily eased include: allowing off-street parking spaces to be considered for outdoor dining and allowing tents to be erected for outdoor dining in appropriate areas.
Businesses will be facing an indoor capacity of just 25 percent of their building occupancy under the governor's order, so helping them move outdoors in an organized manner makes sense. Safety will remain key with all social distancing requirements in place and protective masks strongly encouraged in public.
During the City Commission meeting Monday, May 4, a small business assistance program, in the form of a proposed grant program, will be discussed. The initiative, as currently conceived, would help stabilize struggling small businesses with an up to $5,000 grant to cover the cost of sanitizer, masks, rent, operations and vendor bills. $2.2 million in economic development and TIF funds have been identified which could potentially assist up to 400 brick-and-mortar small businesses.
The Commission meeting will be a video conference starting at 1:30 p.m. and can be viewed online at
www.SarasotaFL.Gov
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Survey Results
In the last edition of Weekly Briefs, we asked the community to participate in a short survey to help guide the safe reopening of businesses and restore the health of the local economy.
The number of respondents was impressive –1,400 responses in just five days. A big thank you to all who participated!
Some salient points:
- 71% - masks should be required in public until the COVID-19 threat has passed
- 85% - agree that fast, convenient and affordable COVID-19 testing will be important or extremely important to restore public health and the economy
- 93% - say it's important or extremely important for a business to implement social distancing spacing until the risk of COVID-19 minimizes
- 89% - say it's important or extremely important that a business tests the temperature of their employees each day and offers testing when there is an elevated temperature
- 86% - say it's important or extremely important that the employees of a business wear a protective mask
A link to the report is available below:
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These results are being considered to help develop the best reopening possible for businesses.
Thanks again for taking the time to respond. And thank you to City staff, especially in the Human Resources Department, for going above and beyond to quickly assemble and disseminate the survey, and compile the results in a timely fashion while juggling many other projects and responsibilities.
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Neighborhood Testing Continues
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In the meantime, the number of positive cases in the city limits is going up.
Rosemary District resident David Lough took it upon himself to start charting the cases and he's been generously sharing his work with us.
These visuals
show the increases in positive cases in Sarasota by zip code. As I interpret the data with input from public health professionals, it's evident we need to be cautious and strictly adhere to social distancing as we begin the governor’s Phase I recovery plan.
This week, the Florida Department of Health in Sarasota County hosted two more rounds of community-based testing in North Sarasota testing almost 150 patients, and another has already been announced for Tuesday, May 5 at Robert L. Taylor Community Complex. The same rules will apply to be tested: You must work in a health care setting or currently be experiencing COVID-19 symptoms (
fever, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, new loss of taste or smell).
You also must have an appointment. To make one, please call 941-861-2883 Monday – Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. While it is designated as a drive-thru site, walkers and bicyclists can be accommodated.
We’d like to express our gratitude to Chuck Henry, Director of the Health Department in Sarasota County, for ensuring neighborhood testing sites are available in Sarasota.
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Office of Housing and Community Development - Home Repair Program
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The Office of Housing and Community Development will continue to play a key role in our economic recovery from the COVID-19 emergency. Operated jointly by the City of Sarasota and Sarasota County, OHCD provides valuable funding and assistance to community members in need.
For low-income individuals and families and those finding themselves unemployed or struggling to make ends meet, having to pay for a new roof or A/C unit for their home could be a real setback, but unavoidable, especially with summer and hurricane season fast approaching. Luckily, OHCD can assist through its home repair program. Interest-free loans are available to help income-eligible families make necessary repairs and improvements to their homes. The loan is in the form of a mortgage on the home, and the amount available is based on equity in the home.
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A before-and-after example of a new roof installation completed as part of OHCD's home repair program.
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Single-Stream Recycling Program: One Year Later
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It’s hard to believe it’s been more than a year since we rolled out those new, big, green recycling carts with yellow lids to our city customers. It was a major undertaking last spring for our Solid Waste staff to deliver more than 15,000 of the carts throughout the city and to transition from the previous two-bin system to the new, more efficient single-stream recycling program. The goal was to make it even easier for residents to put all their recyclables together in one large cart so that more materials can be collected and reused instead of being sent to the landfill.
So, how is our community doing so far? To find out, our staff invited Kessler Consulting Inc. to conduct a recycling composition study by sampling a week’s worth of our collections and looking at the level of contamination from non-recyclables. A team hand-sorted and analyzed the loads and found that nearly 85 percent of the material was recyclable. That’s a great result that is on par with other Florida communities and shows our citizens are doing a great job. Well done!
That said, there’s still room to improve. The study found items such as paper towels, plastic utensils and straws, plastic bags, clothing, construction debris, food waste, cat litter, dirty diapers, scrap metal, hoses, electronics and even full bags of garbage being deposited in city recycling bins. These contaminants can present safety and health issues for the workers and equipment used to sort the materials at the local recycling facility. They also lower the value of the recycling streams on the secondary market and drive up costs that can end up getting passed along to taxpayers.
Don’t be guilty of “wish-cycling” – just hoping something is recyclable and putting it in your cart. If you’re unsure, first check the handy infographic found embossed on the yellow lid of your cart that shows some of the common items that can and cannot be placed inside. You can also visit
www.sarasotaFL.gov/BeCartSmart
, where you can type an item into the online search tool and learn how to properly dispose of it.
Thanks for doing your part by properly recycling and helping to make our community greener and more sustainable!
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Tree Giveaway – Registration Starts May 3
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It’s back! Our popular Community Canopy tree giveaway gets underway this Sunday night, May 3 at midnight. At that time, City of Sarasota residents can log on to
www.ArborDay.org/Sarasota
and reserve one tree per household.
Please note:
The website goes live at midnight, May 3.
125 trees will be given away with four species of native trees to choose from:
- Bald Cypress
- Dahoon holly
- Little Gem Magnolia
- Sweetbay Magnolia
Each tree is a sapling and arrives at your home in a one-gallon container. To meet social distancing protocols, delivery will be contactless will no interaction needed with the delivery person.
For those interested in a free tree to help grow our urban forest, clean the air, filter stormwater and make the environment even more pleasant in Sarasota for generations to come, you’re encouraged to reserve one as soon as the website goes live. Remember, the website will not be available until midnight on Sunday, May 3.
Since 2017, a total of 1,004 trees have been planted through the Community Canopy, which we offer in partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation.
Bravo to all for picking up a shovel and planting a tree! And thanks to our Sustainability team for shepherding this popular program.
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"Sarasota Scene"
Norm Schimmel
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