Collier governments to take on reopening parts of the county during public meetings next week

"It is important to discuss at the local level any effort to reopen the city, according to Jared Grifoni, City Council vice chairman.

“It is extremely important for the future of our island, where many members of our community are suffering, that people are not left in the dark and filled with uncertainty about what might happen next,” he wrote in an email.

People have taken “reasonable precautions and safety measures” like social distancing that need to continue to allow people to get back to work “without causing further unnecessary long-term damage,” according to Grifoni.

Grifoni called for “a strict focus on social distancing, continued education and monitoring, and increased testing availability” instead of “forced shutdowns of society including those not in an at-risk demographic.” - Read more here: Naples Daily News 4/24/20

Marco Island city officials say how coronavirus is changing their lives

City Council Vice-chair Jared Grifoni wrote he realized how many little things he had taken for granted.... "During Hurricane Irma, [...] one of the lessons learned during the post-storm reality was how important communication of good information is to everyone," he wrote. "The city policies and outreach have improved a great deal since then but I've still wanted to be there personally for our citizens." - Read more here: Marco Eagle, 3/31/20

COVID-19 - Top 5 Latest Updates

I hope you are all staying healthy. Things continue to change on a daily basis with regard to the COVID-19 response at a local, state, and federal level. As a baseline, everyone should follow the CDC and DOH guidelines as well as the Governor's executive orders. Social distancing, hand washing, small groups (less than 10), exercise personal responsibility, and if you're at risk: stay home. I want to share with you some of the latest updates but first and foremost a reminder, please be sure to check the city's COVID-19 website where you can find all the official communications released by the city, city manager, and other important updates. You can visit the site by clicking here: https://www.cityofmarcoisland.com/emergency If you are on Facebook you can follow my page where I am sharing important information consistently here: https://www.facebook.com/jaredgrifoni/ 1. Here is the latest case data for Collier County as of 11am this morning: Total Cases: 47 Residents: 39 Residents Not in Florida: 0 Non-Residents: 8

Demographics of Cases Age Range: 17 to 84 Average Age: 58 Men: 29 Women: 18

Conditions and Care Deaths: 0 Hospitalizations: 8

Case Designations Travel-Related: 23 Not Travel-Related: 15 Travel Unknown: 9

Statewide: Total Tests - 18,289 Positive - 1,682 Negative - 15,374 Results Pending - 1,233 Approximately 90% of the confirmed tests are coming back negative. The numbers could definitely go up depending on how many are being tested but that could also reduce the hospitalization and mortality rate, especially if so many are asymptomatic or mild cases.The Florida Department of Health has launched a site that shows the confirmed cases of COVID-19 by county within the State of Florida which you can find here. Marco Island currently has no confirmed positive cases of COVID-19. You can review the daily updated by City list by clicking the link here. Scroll down to "Review case, monitoring and PUI information on the latest COVID-19 Daily Report" and then click "See the report."

2. "The City is maintaining direct communications with local hotels, and as of yesterday they were reporting occupancy rates ranging from 4% to 22% and falling... The City is closely monitoring the beaches, and our direct observation is that what the hotels are telling us is true – they are policing any activity on the beach closely, and at least one is prohibiting access to the beach entirely. We are seeing the same level of adherence to the recommended social distancing measures from our beachfront condominium owners... The equation is about the level of the emergency and how deeply we curtail civil liberties in its name, particularly when people do have significant ability to protect themselves from this threat.  It is an ongoing analysis, and the City continues to monitor the situation every day in order to make decisions in the best interest of the residents of Marco Island.  Working together we will get to the other side of this unprecedented event." - Read the full City of Marco Island Press Release (3/25/20) 3. Marco Island restaurants are complying with Governor DeSantis' executive order that all restaurants and food establishments now required to be take-out or delivery only. For a list of open restaurants, check out the recent Marco Eagle article here. 4. Governor DeSantis has also issued two other executive orders addressing quarantine requirements for travelers from the tristate area (NY/NJ/CT). These orders are to be enforced by "every state and county attorney, sheriff, police officer, and other appropriate city and county officials upon request to assist the Department of Health." 5. According to the Governor's press conference yesterday, there's a new FL health advisory recommending that anyone 65+ or anyone with a serious underlying medical condition (lung disease, serious heart condition, severe obesity, and more) should stay at home for 14 days to minimize spread. Marco Island is a wonderful community and we have demonstrated time and time again that we will come together in difficult situations. It's a different challenge today but facing it cooperatively and positively is what makes our community so amazing. We should do our best to be there for those who need us, reject fear, panic, and negativity, and continue to be partners in this challenge. We're in this together and we'll get through this together. Please let me know if you have any further questions, comments, or suggestions.