Prior to a more than one-hour public discussion of the draft emergency resolution, the Council unanimously voted to close City Hall to the public until further notice, beginning at noon today. This follows earlier proactive steps taken by the city to prevent further spread of the Coronavirus by limiting public access at City Hall; encouraging online and payment drop-off options; and creating a virtual option for the March 19 Council meeting.
Mayor Sam Norton said, “As a small city, it’s critical that we keep our staff healthy to ensure continued services to our residents. We continue to closely monitor this situation with the help of our state and federal partners, but working together, we’ll all get through this.”
The draft emergency resolution is similar to actions taken across Georgia in communities, both rural and metropolitan, and in communities with confirmed diagnoses as well as communities with no confirmed cases. By declaring a state of emergency, it allows city officials to take necessary steps to ensure the overall health and welfare of city residents.
“This action isn’t something that we take lightly,” said Mayor Sam Norton. “None of us support government overreach, but in times like this, local governments must be empowered to take decisive actions when it comes to the public health and safety.”
Among the emergency measures to be considered by the Council during its next special called meeting on Wednesday, March 25 at 4:00 p.m.:
Residents and business owners who would like to share feedback regarding the proposed emergency resolution can send comments to the City by email at customerservice@dahlonega.gov.
The possible state of emergency follows the Council’s March 19, 2020 special called meeting where the City Council unanimously approved two measures that assist with city efforts in responding to COVID-19 (Coronavirus). Those measures included a comprehensive employee telecommuting policy and a temporary moratorium on special event applications. Effective March 20, the city is no longer accepting new special event applications until further notice.
As part of these recent changes, all non-essential city staff will immediately shift to remote worksites, telecommuting from their homes.
“All essential city services continue to operate uninterrupted at this time,” said City Manager Bill Schmid. “Shifting non-essential employees out of our city facilities helps us limit potential exposure to essential staff, protecting their and the public’s health and working to ensure we can continue our core services.”
The Dahlonega Downtown Development Authority (DDA) recently notified city businesses that State of Georgia received its approved emergency declaration, making small businesses eligible to apply for Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration. Business owners can learn more and apply at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela/.
The DDA staff is also working to identify other resources available to business owners during this difficult time. To learn more and to contact the DDA, email staff@dahlonegadda.org.
Residents may find specific Coronavirus Information available on the following websites:
CDC – https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/prevention.html
Georgia Department of Public Health – https://dph.georgia.gov/novelcoronavirus
District 2 Public Health Department – http://phdistrict2.org/
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