In the Loop
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UGA Will Start Reopening June 15
Jere Morehead.
The University of Georgia has announced a plan to start reopening in June after three months of closure during the coronavirus pandemic.
President Jere Morehead, Provost Jack Hu and Vice President for Finance and Administration Ryan Nesbit laid out the plan—prepared with advice from health care faculty—in an email to the university community.
Vice presidents, deans, department heads and other supervisors will be responsible for determining when and how the employees they supervise can safely return to campus over the next two weeks.
During Phase 1, staggered or rotating work schedules and telecommuting will be encouraged to maintain social distancing. More people will be brought back to campus during Phase 2, and Phase 3 will be the full return of faculty, staff and students to campus in August.
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Oconee County Is Close to Finalizing a $65 Million SPLOST List
Commission Chairman John Daniell hears from Animal Services manager Crystal Berisko.
Oconee County voters in November will be presented with a $64.6 million wish list of projects to be funded by a Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax if the Board of Commissioners accepts a staff proposal given it last week.
Included on the list is $14.4 million for roads and bridges, $7.5 million for water and sewer projects, $6.9 million for a library and government administrative building, and $6.3 million for county broadband.
The list also includes nearly $9 million for the county’s four cities to use for their own projects.
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Big Jump Reported in Athens Area's COVID-19 Numbers
The Northeast Health District added 81 new confirmed COVID-19 cases and four new deaths in the 1 p.m. Department of Public Health Daily Status Report on Wednesday.
The number of new cases is the largest number ever added in a 24-hour period, and the seven-day rolling average of added cases jumped from 24.9 on Tuesday to 34.4 on Wednesday.
The seven-day rolling average of COVID-19 deaths in the 10-county region also increased from 1.4 on Tuesday to 1.9 on Wednesday, as the region has added 13 deaths in the last seven days.
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Budget Calls for Eliminating 400 UGA Jobs
The University System of Georgia's proposed fiscal 2021 budget calls for eliminating 394 positions at the University of Georgia to meet Gov. Brian Kemp's order for state agencies to cut 14%.
The proposed budget was obtained by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. For all of the USG's 26 institutions combined, it calls for laying off 735 people and freezing another 1,341 open positions. Along with cuts to travel and other expenses, that would save $361 million.
UGA appears to be cutting mostly administrative and support staff, sparing faculty. Those administrative cuts, however, would "lead to a severe disruption in service," USG wrote, including delays in hiring, accounting and processing student accounts. In addition, workers making over $35,000 a year would be furloughed anywhere from four to 16 days, depending on their pay. UGA's current $421 million budget would shrink by $59 million.
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Northeast Georgia COVID-19 Cases Appear to Be Stabilizing
The Northeast Health District added 14 cases of confirmed COVID-19 with the 1 p.m. Department of Public Health Daily Status Report on Wednesday, and the seven-day rolling average of added cases dropped to the level it has maintained for the last week.
The 10-county region added an additional death, of a 45-year-old female in Greene County with known chronic conditions, bringing the total number of deaths to 48 and holding the seven-day rolling average of added deaths at 1.1.
The Department of Community Health Long-Term Care Facility Report issued late on Tuesday showed one additional death at a Walton County nursing home.
That report also showed an increase in COVID positive residents at the area’s long-term care facilities and an increase in the number of COVID positive staff.
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DA Candidate Sues Kemp Over Delayed Election
Deborah Gonzalez, a candidate for district attorney in Athens, sued Gov. Brian Kemp today seeking to have the election returned to November 2020.
Former district attorney Ken Mauldin resigned in February, making his chief assistant, Brian Patterson, acting DA and triggering a special election in November. At that time, Patterson and Gonzalez were already running for the seat. Mauldin had previously announced he would not seek re-election.
Under a little-known state law passed in 2018, if Kemp appointed a replacement for Mauldin within six months of he election, the election would be pushed back two years. That deadline came and went two weeks ago.
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Some Parks Reopen, Early Voting Starts Today
In-person early voting started today across Georgia, and Athens-Clarke County is reopening some parks as well.
Ben Burton, Memorial and Virginia Walker (formerly Trail Creek) parks have partially reopened, and Sandy Creek Park will do so on Tuesday. Click here for information on what activities are allowed and which facilities remain closed at each park. Gatherings are limited to 10 people, and masks are recommended.
In addition to the previously mentioned parks, Dudley Park, Firefly Trail, the Greenway and trails at Sandy Creek Nature Center remain open.
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Kemp Orders Bars to Stay Closed Through End of May
Gov. Brian Kemp issued an executive order Tuesday telling bars, nightclubs and live performance venues to stay closed at least through May 31.
"I know this extension is difficult for many Georgia business owners and communities that have music venues," Kemp said. "However, we believe that waiting a little bit longer will enhance health outcomes and give folks the opportunity to prepare for safe reopening in the near future."
Kemp closed bars, restaurants and many other types of businesses on Apr. 2 as the coronavirus pandemic spread (pre-empting an earlier local order in Athens that was passed Mar. 19). He allowed some—including restaurants, movie theaters, bowling alleys, tattoo parlors and hair and nail salons—to reopen late last month, if they took safety precautions.
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