Weekly News Roundup – 05/10/2020
Covid-19 Updates and Precautions • Joining Forces to Double the Impact • Spilka: Local budgets ‘may not be pretty’ • Letter to Roy MacDowell from the town regarding Legacy Farms School Enrollment 2020-05-04 • Community Notice: Mandatory Water Use Restriction in Effect • Town of Hopkinton COVID-19 Construction ORDER • Hopkinton Parks and Recreation: Summer Program Update and Updated Refund Policy • Select Board Actions Taken – 05/05/2020
Covid-19 Updates and Precautions
Covid-19 Resource page has moved to a new site below. This page provides information, maps and resources about the coronavirus response in our local area.
Visit Hopkinton, MA – Coronavirus Response Hub
As of 11:00 a.m. on 5/7/20, Hopkinton’s Health Department is reporting 104 total confirmed COVID-19 cases; 61 of those cases are active, with 32 recoveries and 11 deaths. You can see historical tracking and updates on Hopkinton’s Community Impact Dashboard: Information from Health Officials is that Massachusetts is still in the tail end of “the surge” (expected peak) period.
The most recent update from May 8th includes:
- Remote Order Fulfillment
- Cleaning Services
The update from May 6th includes:
- Governor Eases Some Restrictions on “Non-Essential” Business
- Massachusetts Department of Public Health COVID-19 Weekly Dashboard
- Stay safe, vote by early by mail
Joining Forces to Double the Impact
eHop is helping raise funds for Project Just Because with a Matching Donation Campaign. If you’d like to help out, please go to eHop Donation Match for Project Just Because – Joining Forces to Double the Impact
Spilka: Local budgets ‘may not be pretty’
With the normal timeline thrown off course and the pandemic’s full economic impact not yet quantified, it’s still unclear when the Legislature will take up the fiscal 2021 budget or what its bottom line will be.
The lack of clarity around a state budget plan creates uncertainty for anyone who relies on spending in the more than $43 billion budget and means local aid levels, a major source of revenue for municipal government, remain unknown for the municipal officials who usually craft their city and town budgets in the spring.
https://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/20200508/spilka-local-budgets-may-not-be-pretty
Letter to Roy MacDowell from the town regarding Legacy Farms School Enrollment 2020-05-04
On April 1, 2020, there were 466 students enrolled in the Hopkinton public schools living in Legacy Farms. The $9,000 per pupil 2008 figure, compounded at 4% annually, equals $14,409 per pupil at this time. A calculation of the amount now due is below:
416-446 students (one 30-student increment) – $432,270
New Amount Due $432,270
A $2,078,250 payment for five 30-student increments in 2019 is still pending, so the total
owed at this time is $2,510,520.
Principal Planner’s Office Virtual Office Hours
The Hopkinton Principal Planner will be open for a virtual “office hours” drop-in on Tuesday 5/12/2020 from 4pm – 6pm.
Click here for Meeting link and details
Community Notice: Mandatory Water Use Restriction in Effect
Under chapter 199-6 Section F; Lawn sprinklers may be used for lawn watering, two days per week, outside of the hours of 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM. All other outdoor non-essential use is permitted daily outside the hours of 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. People residing in precinct one and three may water on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Precincts two and four may water on Wednesday and Fridays. There shall be no lawn watering on Saturday, Sunday or Monday. This only applies to those water services connected to the municipal water system.
Town of Hopkinton COVID-19 Construction ORDER
Starting on April 24, 2020 and continuing until the Town of Hopkinton Board of Health rescinds, supersedes, or modifies this Policy, all persons and entities engaged in any construction activity at any site within the municipal limits of the Town of Hopkinton (“construction sites”) MUST comply with the following policies and procedures to reduce the potential for the spread of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 at construction sites.
Hopkinton Parks and Recreation: Summer Program Update and Updated Refund Policy
A credit is offered to customers that elect not to participate in a scheduled program due to a scheduling conflict or other circumstances. There is no expiration date to applied credits and it can be applied towards any program offered by Parks and Recreation and can be used for any member of your household. Account credit will not be issued if the cancellation takes place within two weeks of the program start date.
Select Board Actions Taken – 05/05/2020
6:31 PM PUBLIC FORUM
2. Residents are invited to share ideas, opinions or ask questions regarding Town Government.
The Select Board discussed likely postponement of Town Meeting to September. No official action is taken yet.
View Video ~3.5 minutes
6:35 PM COVID-19 UPDATE
3. The Select Board will receive an update from the Board of Health on the Town’s response to COVID-19.
View Video ~22 minutes
6:50 PM CONSENT AGENDA
4.
i. MINUTES – The Select Board will consider approving the Minutes of the 4/28/20 meeting.
ii. GIFTS
The Select Board will consider accepting the Ambulance Fund gifts
The Select Board approved the Consent Agenda. (5-0)
View Video ~1 minute
7:15 PM TOWN MANAGER REPORT
6. a. Main Street Corridor Project Update.
7.
b. Special Election: The Town Manager will give the Select Board a heads-up on a prospective special election.
c. Request to lift hiring freeze: Dispatcher and FireFighter/Paramedic
Supporting Exhibits: Town Manager Report
View Agenda Packet – Page 3
The Select Board allowed the Town to fill the following positions: Firefighter/Paramedic; Dispatcher. (5-0)
View Video ~11 minutes