CITY NEWS

• May 7th, 2020 - RESIDENTIAL BULK PICK UP SERVICE TO RESUME MAY 15
  
  
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  The City of Eastland has been notified by Waste Solutions of the resuming of their residential bulk pick up services on May 15. The service was halted on April 21 due to the COVID 19 pandemic. 

  The free Residential Bulk Pick Up service occurs twice monthly on the first (1^st) and third (3^rd) Fridays of each month. Residential customers must contact Eastland City Hall at least 24 hours in advance of a scheduled pick up date to be placed on the list. Waste Solutions will not collect any items curbside if the address is not on the list.

  For questions on these or other City matters please stop by Eastland City Hall, 113 E Commerce St. Monday through Friday 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. excluding holidays. Or you may call during business hours at 254-629-8321.

• May 5th, 2020 - The City Manager Orders Changes to City Facilities Restrictions as Texas Reopens
  
  
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  The Governors Executive Order No. 18 reopened selected businesses to 25% capacity beginning on May 1, 2020. While the restrictions on city facilities will continue, some facilities will reopen to the public. Other restrictions are likely required for the foreseeable future.

   

  1. The Municipal Pool is closed for the 2020 Swimming season.  The Governor’s order still prohibits use of public swimming pools.  However, even if the governor removes the prohibition, due to the social distancing requirements to minimize spread of the COVID -019, we cannot open our city pool. We realize this reduces opportunities for family recreation.  However, opening the pool, even at reduced capacity, is not practical with children at play in a water park environment.
  2. City Park:  Remains closed for any social gatherings.  However, the park is open to small family activities, the playground and outdoor exercise.
  3. Airport:  No group meetings will be held or scheduled. Flight operations will continue as usual. 
  4. City Hall:  The City Hall foyer is now open to the public for business.  Please heed the social distancing instructions to protect you, our other guests and staff.  The public cannot enter other city offices without an appointment.  Non-City Hall assigned employees will be able to make appointments with all city hall offices by phone or email.  Meetings in the City Commission Chamber must be conducted using social distancing or done as virtual meetings using social media platforms.
  5. Senior Citizens Center:  Remains closed to the public until further notice.  All programs and activities are cancelled. 
  6. Police and Fire Departments:  The foyer will be open to the public, no admittance beyond that point except by appointment only.   

  For questions please stop by Eastland City Hall, 113 E Commerce St. Monday through Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., excluding holidays, or call during business hours at (254) 629-8321.

• April 30th, 2020 - GOVERNOR ABBOTT ORDER ALLOWS SELECTED NON-ESSENTIAL BUSINESSES TO OPEN ON MAY 1, 2020
  
  
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  While the City of Eastland Declaration of Local Disaster Due to Public Health Emergency remains in effect through May 18, 2020, the Governor of Texas has issued Executive Order No. 18 (EO 18), effective at 12:01 A.M. on May 1, 2020 which allows the limited reopening of non-essential businesses as follows: 

  1. Retail services may operate at up to 25% of the total listed occupancy of the retail establishment.
  2. Dine-in Restaurants 25% of listed occupancy, provided less than 51% of gross receipts are from alcohol sales.
  3. Movie theaters up to 25% of listed capacity for each screening.
  4. Museums and Libraries. May operate at up to 25% capacity, interactive exhibits remain closed.
  5. Services provided by individual working alone in an office.
  6. Counties with five or Fewer COVID 19 cases, may operate at 50% capacity for all items listed above
  7. Golf Course operations
  8. Local Government
  9. Other services listed in future executive orders.

   

       1. The conditions do not apply to essential business activities.

    

       2. Religious activities should be conducted in accordance with the joint guidance issued and updated by the    attorney general and governor.

   

       3.  People shall not visit bars, gyms, public swimming pools, interactive amusement venues, such as bowling alleys and video arcades, massage establishments, tattoo studios, piercing studios, cosmetology salons.

   

       4. The executive order does not prohibit people from accessing essential or reopened services or engaging in essential daily activities, such as going to grocery stores or gas stations, visiting parks, hunting or fishing, or engaging in physical activity so long as the necessary precautions are maintained to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and to minimize person-to-person contact with people who are not in the same household.

   

      5.  People shall not visit nursing homes, living centers, assisted living facilities, or long-term care facilities unless to provide critical assistance as determined by the Texas health and human services (HHSC).  Nursing homes, living centers, assisted living facilities should follow infection control policies and practices set forth by the HHSC, including minimizing movement of staff between facilities whenever possible.

   

     6.  Schools will remain closed for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year.

   

  Each business should open in accordance with EO 18, and the checklists in The Governor’s Report to Open Texas.  View EO 18 at https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-issues-executive-order-relating-to-the-expanded-reopening-of-services & the Governor’s Report at https://gov.texas.gov/organization/opentexas.

   

  For questions please stop by Eastland City Hall, 113 E Commerce St. Monday through Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., excluding holidays, or call during business hours at (254) 629-8321.

• April 21st, 2020 - WASTE CONNECTIONS SUSPENDS BULK PICK UP PROGRAM DUE TO COVID-19
  
  
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  The City of Eastland has been notified by Waste Connections, the contracted solid waste removal company, they have temporarily suspended the Residential Bulk & Brush pick up services held each first and third Friday of the month.

   “We understand that limiting collection services to securely bagged or container cart and suspension of Residential Bulk & Brush only warrants some discretion among our residents for what they dispose of and when” said Sean Dowden, District Manager. “Now is also a good time to educate our customers to bag and tie their household trash, a commonly overlooked best practice. Household trash that is not properly bagged and tied is susceptible to spills and further increases the risk of exposure for our personnel to potentially infectious waste,” he added.

  Dowden expressed the company’s appreciation for their customers’ understanding as they take precautions to protect the health and well-being of their employees, customers and communities.

  For more information on this or other City of Eastland related matters, please contact Eastland City Hall at 254-629-8321.

   

   

• March 18th, 2020 - DECLARATION OF LOCAL DISASTER DUE TO PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY
  
  
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  WHEREAS the World Health Organization has declared the coronavirus, now designated COVID-19, as a global pandemic on March 11, 2020; and

   

  WHEREAS, symptoms of COVID-19 can range from mild to severe illness and cause further complications including death; and the COVID-19 virus mainly spreads between people who are in close contact with one another through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes; and

   

  WHEREAS, on March 13, 2020, the governor of Texas issued a proclamation certifying that COVID-19 poses an imminent threat of disaster in the state and declaring a state of disaster for all counties of Texas; and

   

  WHEREAS, the continued worldwide spread of COVID-19 presents an imminent threat of widespread illness, which requires emergency action for the protection of the people of the City of Eastland; and

   

  WHEREAS, the implementation of mitigation strategies can slow the transmission of the disease, this Declaration activates the City Emergency Management Plan; and

   

  WHEREAS, the City Commission of the City of Eastland has determined that extraordinary measures must be taken to mitigate the effects of this public health emergency and to facilitate the efficient, rapid, and cooperative response to the emergency;

   

  THEREFORE, Be It Proclaimed by the City Commission of the City of Eastland that:

   

  1.   A local state of disaster is hereby proclaimed for the City of Eastland, pursuant to 418.108(a) of the Texas Government Code.

   

  2.   This declaration of a local state of disaster shall be given prompt and general publicity, shall be filed promptly with the City Secretary, and activates the City of Eastland Emergency Plan, pursuant to 418.108(b) of the Texas Government Code.

   

  3.   Pursuant to the Texas Health and Safety Code, Section 122.006, any individual adult or child having traveled and visited any level 3 country as established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), or traveled via a cruise ship, within the ten (10) days prior to this declaration and returning to Eastland, Texas, must be quarantined at home for 14 days.

   

  4.   This Declaration shall take effect immediately from and after its issuance.

       

  ORDERED this the 18th day of March, 2020 at 10:45 a.m.

                                                                                     

  Larry Vernon, Mayor

  ATTEST:                                                                                

   

  Roma Holley, City Secretary

  COVID-19 Response Implementation Plan

   

  In order to minimize the impact of the COVID-19 virus to the citizens of Eastland, the City of Eastland is implementing the following plan:

  1.  Support President Trump’s Coronavirus Guidelines for America:

  1. IF YOU FEEL SICK, stay home. Do not go to work. Contact your medical provider.
  2. IF YOUR CHILDREN ARE SICK, keep them at home. Do not send them to school. Contact your medical provider.
  3. IF SOMEONE IN YOUR HOUSEHOLD HAS TESTED POSITIVE for the coronavirus, keep the entire household at home.  Do not go to work.  Do not go to school. Contact your medical provider.
  4. IF YOU ARE AN OLDER PERSON, stay home and away from other people.
  5. IF YOU ARE A PERSON WITH A SERIOUS UNDERLYING CONDITION that can put you at increased risk (for example, a condition that impairs your lung or heart function or weakens your immune system), stay home and away from other people.
  6. Work or engage in schooling FROM HOME whenever possible.
  7. IF YOU WORK IN A CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE INDUSTRY, as defined by the Department of Homeland Security, such as healthcare services and pharmaceutical and food supply, you have a special responsibility to maintain your normal work schedule.  You and your employers should follow CDC guidance to protect your health at work.
  8. Avoid social gatherings in groups of more than 10 people.
  9. Avoid eating or drinking at bars, restaurants, and food courts – USE DRIVE-THRU, PICKUP, OR DELIVERY OPTIONS.
  10. AVOID DISCRETIONARY TRAVEL, shopping trips and social visits.
  11. DO NOT VISIT nursing homes or retirement or long-term care facilities unless to provide critical assistance.
  12. PRACTICE GOOD HYGIENE:

  • WASH YOUR HANDS, especially after touching any frequently used item or surface.
  • AVOID TOUCHING YOUR FACE.
  • SNEEZE OR COUGH INTO A TISSUE, OR THE INSIDE OF YOUR ELBOW.
  • DISINFECT FREQUENTLY USED ITEMS AND SURFACES as much as possible.

   

  1. 2.       The City Manager has ordered the following facilities closures to protect employees as well as the public:    
     1. City Park:  Closed for any social gatherings until April 1, 2020.
     2. Airport:  Terminal closed to the public until April 1, 2020.  No group meetings will be held or scheduled. Flight operations will continue as usual. 
     3. City Hall:  Front doors will be locked until April 1, 2020.  A sign will be posted and the public will be admitted by appointment only.  Staff will monitor telephones during business hours. Non-City Hall assigned employees will be able to make appointments with all city hall offices by phone or email. 
     4. Senior Citizens Center:  Closed to the public until April 1, 2020.  All programs and activities are cancelled. 
     5. Police and Fire Departments: Front doors will be locked until April 1, 2020.  A sign will be posted and the public will be admitted by appointment only.  Staff will monitor telephones during business hours.
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