OCTOBER 1, 2020
Greetings from City Hall!
What a great time to be a Lightning hockey fan, and especially a citizen of this great city! As I hope you all know, we have an excellent relationship with the Lightning organization, and our new outdoor rink was once described as the “nicest rink in North America” by the President and CEO of the Lightning, Mr. Steve Griggs. While everyone in Tampa Bay has been enjoying the stressful playoff run that led to the Lightning winning the Stanley Cup, our city stands as one of the few municipalities who enjoy a close relationship with the organization. They are first class in everything they do, and present a tremendous example of community engagement that can’t be beat. Congratulations to the Lightning on a job well done.
Although we are still riding the high of how our professional sports teams are doing (don’t forget the Rays, who also won the American League East and swept the Toronto Blue Jays in the first round of the Major League Baseball playoffs), signs of the pandemic are still with us, and we need to continue to respect the limits they require, in order to get us back to some kind of normal. That means we still need to follow CDC guidelines, in terms of the core basics, those being masks, washing your hands, social distancing and staying home where possible. We are still a long way from totally whipping this disease, and while we need to live our lives, it is as important as ever to be careful. The Governor has implemented Phase III of the recovery, which increased business opportunities and restaurant capacities. However, Pinellas County has NOT (as of this writing) lifted the mask requirement, so please react accordingly.
The City is no longer in Emergency mode of operations, but we still follow CDC guidelines and those of Pinellas County and the State. While there are opportunities to have personal meetings with City employees where necessary, it is still a requirement to make an appointment in advance and wear a mask while in a city building. We are still encouraging the public to conduct business virtually wherever possible. Hopefully, we will get used to it.
Finally, I am going to reduce the frequency of my e-newsletter from every two weeks to once per month. I’m sure you are able to get what you need from our website and other communication options. I want to stay in touch, but it will just be a little less often. Thanks for the comments received, and we hope to continue all of the ways by which we communicate.
PS – Shhhhh……Experience Oldsmar, the incredible seasonal magazine put out by the City, is close to being mailed out…..to every household. You want to check this out……it is AWESOME!!!!!
Don’t forget the reference information below. Have a great weekend.
Al b
