A positive case of COVID-19 has closed down Enderby City Hall.
After learning an individual in attendance of the Aug. 17 council meeting tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the health authority deemed there is a risk of exposure for others who were in the room at the same time, the City of Enderby said in a statement.
All staff and councillors who were at that meeting are self-isolating for 14 days.
Therefore, Enderby City Hall is closed and will be providing remote service only through Aug. 31.
Only those who were at the Monday evening meeting need to self-isolate since contact and monitor for symptoms.
“Others do not need to self-isolate unless the health authority determines that they have been in contact with a positive person, in which case they will be notified by the health authority,” the city said. “The health authority performs contact tracing and will contact you if you need to self-isolate.”
As city hall has a relatively small staff, most of whom are self-isolating, public access to city hall cannot be provided during this time. However, several remote service options are available to help residents.
Service will be provided remotely through the following ways:
- Telephone: 250-838-7230. All telephone calls will go to the answering service and then routed to the correct staff member
- Email: info@cityofenderby.com
- Correspondence can be dropped through the mail slot by the front doors of city hall
For essential and time-sensitive items that need to be picked up from city hall, appointments can be scheduled by calling 250-838-7230 during normal business hours. One of the staff who are not self-isolating will return messages. Appointments must be scheduled in advance, are only for essential and time-sensitive items, and are subject to staff availability.
All emergency services and most routine services will continue to be delivered, although some routine services may be delayed. In-person meetings will not occur until the self-isolating staff are cleared by the health authority to return. Staff who are self-isolating will be working from home.
Enderby City Hall has a COVID-19 Safe Operations Plan that it follows, which includes regular sanitation, additional hygiene stations, occupancy limits, and a one-way flow of traffic to control for the risk of infection.
“The City of Enderby extends its thoughts and sympathy to those who may be suffering from COVID-19. We are committed to following the recommendations of the BC Centre for Disease Control and our Safe Operations Plan for the protection of the workers and the public, while also ensuring that services continue to be provided.”
City Hall is expected to reopen to the public on Sept. 1. Updates will be posted to the City’s Emergency Management Dashboard at www.cityofenderby.com/emergency.
Anyone concerned about potentially contracting the virus can use the British Columbia COVID-19 self-assessment tool at https://bc.thrive.health/ to determine whether you may need further testing or assessment.
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