Coronavirus Update- Phase 2 Status-Recreational Facilities and Town Buildings, CT Legislature Special Session, Exec Order 8 and Case Data
June 15th-The status of Town recreational facilities, buildings and services during Phase 2 is available on the Town’s website. Highlights include the followings:
- As of June 17th, all town playing fields, including the Stadium track, will be open for non-team play. No Town provided benches, goals or nets. Bleachers and dugouts remain closed.
- As of June 17th, WHS/RT 7 tennis courts will be open for walk-on, non-team play, using USTA Coronavirus rules of play. Current reservations will be honored through June 21st.
- As of June 20th, Merwin Meadows will be open to Wilton residents only at no cost. There will be no lifeguards. Lifeguarding can require mouth to mouth contact and other close contact, which can spread the COVID-19 virus and create a health risk to the individuals involved and the Wilton Community at large. If you swim or allow your child to swim, you do so at your own risk. In addition, no bathhouse, no Pavilion, no benches, no picnic tables, no grills, no playground. Face covering required if can’t maintain 6-feet of distance from others and medical condition allows or if not under 2 years old.
- As of July 6th, all basketball courts will be open for non-team play.
- Playgrounds remain closed.
- Town buildings remain closed to the general public.
Prompted by national events and calls for reform, individuals and organizations across the state are proposing changes as to which governmental entity performs certain municipal services or makes local decisions. Some of the proposed changes could be raised during the upcoming special summer session of the CT Legislature. Proposals that could directly impact Wilton, include eliminating school resource officers and state or regional control over all or some aspects of local zoning. We are also hearing the special session may be required to ratify the Governor’s executive orders. Normally, not much, if anything is accomplished by the Legislature in the summer, but this isn’t a normal summer.
Today, the Governor issued Executive Order 8, Police Use of Force and Accountability, applicable to CT State Troopers. The order bans chokeholds, sets forth a use-of-force policy, requires community engagement, bans the purchase of military equipment and required body cameras and dashboard cameras. The contents of the order are already in effect in Wilton. The Wilton Police Department publishes an annual report which includes details on use of force and traffic stops by race, age and sex. Reports are available on the Town’s website. Community policing is at the heart of the department’s approach to policing. Last year, The American Legion Department of Connecticut named the Wilton Police Department the Police Department of the Year, recognizing the department’s community policing efforts.
The CT Data Center reported the following for Wilton as of June 14th:
- 207 cases, one additional since June 13th
- 1,129 residents tested, 25 additional since June 13th
- 1,425 tests performed, 32 additional since June 13th
- 1,193 negative test results, 19 additional since June 13th
- 232 positive test results, no change since June 13th
- 41 deaths, no change since June 13th
- 20 laboratory-confirmed deaths
- 21 probable deaths
The State does not provide detailed data on antibody testing.
CT DPH reported 7,255 new tests performed and the following for Fairfield County and Statewide as of June 14th:
- 16,338 cases, 32 additional since 6/13 45,235 cases, 147 additional since 6/13
- 1,347 deaths, 1 additional since 6/13 4,204 deaths, 3 additional since 6/13
- 70 hospitalized, 2 more than 6/13 203 hospitalized, 2 less than 6/13
In the coming week, as more of our economy and our Town facilities open up, face coverings continue to be key to protect yourself, your family and your community. “Out of respect for each other, as Americans that care for each other, we need to be wearing masks in public when we cannot social distance.” Dr. Deborah Birx, Coronavirus Response Coordinator for the White House Coronavirus Task Force.
As always, if you have any questions, please email the appropriate town department or me at lynne.vanderslice@wiltonct.org. My next update will be on Thursday, June 18th, unless something prompts an update.
Thank you,
Lynne Vanderslice
First Selectwoman