Northern Westchester Municipalities Adapt to COVID-19 Challenges
Yorktown Supervisor Matt Slater announced Friday the town will limit municipal spending to essential services and COVID-19-related efforts.
As of Friday night, Slater reported there were eight confirmed cases of coronavirus in Yorktown. That number is expected to increase with expanded testing capabilities.
“Given the extraordinary fiscal challenges that we will face in the coming months, it’s prudent to tighten our belts now to prepare for the economic storm heading our way,” Slater said.
The Town Board’s meetings remain cancelled. The local emergency declaration issued last week allows the town government to implement any policies as needed.
Yorktown’s public-health safety measures include: The Nutrition Center will be closed until April 1. Staff will be enhancing the meals on wheels program to deliver to seniors who rely on town services; all extracurricular activity at the Albert A. Capellini Community and Cultural Center will be suspended until April 1; staff who enter occupied homes for inspections or repairs will only do so for emergencies until April 1; and The John C. Hart Memorial Library will limit its capacity during operating hours.
“This situation is very fluid, and frankly, unprecedented. Information has changed several times making it that much harder to provide accurate material for dissemination,” Slater said.
In Peekskill, City Manager Andrew Stewart declared a state of emergency in the city Saturday to reflect similar orders on a statewide scale to enable specific actions that aid city residents and businesses in the face of the health impacts of the coronavirus.
As of Monday, 19 individuals in Peekskill have tested positive for COVID-19 and are under Mandatory Isolation orders from the Westchester County Department of Health.
The first emergency order in Peekskill is the closure of parks facilities, such as playgrounds, to prevent children from playing together closely and transmitting the coronavirus via physical contact or contact with playground equipment that may be contaminated. The city’s open spaces and trails remain open to the public.
There were 25 reported positive cases of COVID-19 in the Town of Cortlandt, Westchester County Executive George Latimer announced.
“These are very difficult and trying times,” Cortlandt Supervisor Linda Puglisi said Monday. “We’re all in this together.”
Parks in Cortlandt remain open, but playground equipment is off limits. All town board, planning board and zoning board of appeals public hearings have been postponed until May.
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