June 5, 2020 - Coronavirus Update #28

To:        All residents
From:    Steve Dunn, First Selectman

NO ADDITIONAL BROOKFIELD RESIDENTS LOST TO COVID-19 VIRUS

There have been no additional cases reported in Brookfield in the past seven days. This is very good news. We remain at the same number of confirmed cases, 154, and we remain with seven deaths in town. New infections have plateaued, hospital admissions are down, demonstrating the effectiveness of the measures we all have been taking.

To be accurate, we will only report cases confirmed by our Director of Public Health.

OPENING OUR BUSINESS

Restaurants have been open for dining outdoors at 50% capacity. Hair salons and Barber shops are also open with restrictions. Other businesses will be allowed to open in phases starting on June 20^th. Details are available on the town website and on the State Website State of Connecticut’s Coronavirus Information

OPENING TOWN HALL

We will be carefully returning Town Hall to normal operations over the month of June. To bring staff back and keep residents safe, we are reconfiguring our offices and installing sneeze shields in all offices that the public visits. The demand for this equipment is great, so there may be a delay in getting Town Hall up and running. You must make an appointment with the department you are visiting. We encourage everyone to use our online services if possible to conduct business with the town. When you visit Town Hall, you must wear a mask at all times, have your temperature checked and answer the CDC health questions. If you have any concerns about your health, please do not come to Town Hall.

OPENING PARKS

We will be opening the Greenway this coming Wednesday, with restrictions. Walking only, masks must be worn. To start there will be no running allowed along with a ban on bicycles, scooters and skateboards. This is to ensure the safety of our residents and to allow the maximum number of people on the Greenway. The Board of Selectmen has met to review the plan to reopen our parks and facilities gradually over the coming weeks, balancing our desire to enjoy them with the need to keep everyone safe. We will follow the guidance of our Director of Public Health, the State, and our Emergency Management team. Details on each facility are listed at the end of this memo and are available on the town website also.

PAYCHECK PROTECTION PROGRAM CHANGES

The U.S. Congress just passed a bipartisan bill called the Paycheck Protection Flexibility Act that makes several important changes to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

The new law eases some of the program’s restrictions, giving small businesses more time to use their loans and letting borrowers spend more of their loans on non-payroll expenses.

Key changes to the PPP include:

• Extends the period to use PPP funds from 8 weeks to 24 weeks
• Reduces the minimum payroll spend to 60% (from 75%)
• Borrowers can now use the 24-week period to fully restore their workforce levels and wages (December 31 instead of June 30)
• Businesses now have five years to repay the loan, instead of two

TOWN BUDGET UPDATE

The Board of Finance met on Wednesday, May 27, for a final review and adoption of the budget for next year. They did adopt a new budget and mill rate. The Governor’s Executive Order 7I, paragraph 13, ordered the board to adopt a budget and set a mill rate by June 4. A virtual board special meeting/public hearing was held on May 12 to receive public comment on the proposed Town and School Budget. The proposed FY 2020 - 2021 Town Budget can be viewed on the town website.

COVID-19 INFORMATION

These are important links to keep up to date on the Coronavirus:

State of Connecticut’s Coronavirus Information

Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC)

World Health Organization (WHO)

Small Business Owners who need assistance in paying workers whose hours have been cut

GET YOUR DOG LICENSE

It is that time of year again and now you can get your dog license on line. Just go to the town website and go to the Town Clerk page. We have already had over 50 dogs registered and we are still going to have our most popular dog contest-details also on the town web site.