Covid Update And Vaccines

With about 2.3 million Arizonans fully vaccinated, approximately 35 percent of the population, there has been a slowdown of vaccinations being administered. It was anticipated that Arizona would need about 60-70 percent of the people fully vaccinated in order to reach herd immunity. For the first time since the end of February 2021, Arizona recorded 1,000 new cases in 24 hours on April 30. The daily average of new cases for April was 21,379 every 24 hours and there were 361 new deaths for the month. There appears to be some light at the end of the tunnel to return completely back to normal, but this virus is not completely over. The CDC still recommends the wearing of masks indoors and social distancing.

Gila County documented 339 new cases in April with 46 new deaths. The Globe-Miami community documented 12 new cases for the month, with five of them currently active. The number of vaccinated residents in Gila County continues to be much higher that the state average. The population for Gila County is 53,598 residents. The percentage of the eligible population vaccinated with one dose is 68.7 percent. The percentage of the eligible population that have received both doses is 59.3 percent. The percentage of adults over 65 years of age that have received at least one dose is 81.2 percent. These are impressive numbers, thanks to our local Gila County Health Department. I urge all of our residents who have not yet been vaccinated and are hesitant to consider getting vaccinated.

The Gila County Health Department is now offering free Covid-19 testing at their site at 5515 S. Apache Ave. in Globe. You can call or text 928-961-1284 to schedule an appointment.

Please continue to pray for the country of India as they battle this virus, with a disastrous number of cases and deaths; 400,000 new cases and 3,600 deaths daily.

Projects In Progress

The Connie’s Bridge project has reached 90 percent completion of the design phase. The next step will move the project into the construction phase with the advertisement for bids. This project is being funded from the State budget at a total amount of $2.8 million. The City Council was presented with two options for the lighting of the bridge. The recommendation was to move forward with lighting on the siderails and two acorn lights at each entrance of the bridge.

Council approved to utilize a cooperative agreement with Pinal County and Cactus Asphalt to complete various seal coat and asphalt projects in different locations of each of the districts. One of the projects is to pour a two-inch mill and fill on the road between Taco Bell east and the Speedway store. The total amount approved is $750,000 that will be funded from the HURF one-half-cent excise tax.

The replacement of the sidewalk in the 100 block of East Mesquite Street is close to completion. Many sidewalks in the community have been identified and prioritized in the order of the most severe and will be addressed as funding is available. The Mesquite sidewalk was one of the worst; it was completely removed, and a new and wider one was poured. The street will remain one-way, but parking will be changed to parallel from angle parking, decreasing parking spots by two. This is to help satisfy the distance required for emergency apparatus. The intersection at Mesquite and Broad will also be turned into a four-way stop to help with the safety of pedestrians and slow traffic down.

Structural Preservation Systems presented Council with an updated proposal for the rehabilitation of the Globe Community Center Pool. The cost for the rehabilitation is $1,080,000 with a life expectancy of 25-30 years, and it can be completed in six months, making the pool available for next summer. There were comments from the public in support of the project and against it. Evelyn Vargas from the Cobre Valley Aquatic Center committee also gave an update on the status of their project. Similar aquatic centers have been built in other cities such as Florence and Coolidge, but their financial status and population is much higher than Globe at this time. Direction was given by council to add the rehabilitation of the Community Center Pool to this year’s upcoming budget process and to seek out funding assistance from stakeholders to help offset some of the costs for the project. This project will provide recreation opportunities sooner than a long-term project like the Aquatic Center for our community by next summer. The hope is to be able to support both projects in the future.

The City lobby is now open for the outside public to enter the building to conduct business. Barrier protection has been installed at all the counters, and anyone entering the building will still be required to wear masks. Council chambers will be open for meetings for members of the public, with masks required. The Library is open to the public with a limit of 10 people at any time. The museum is open to the public and will return to weekend hours in the future. The Active Adult Center will reopen after June 1 with a limited number of persons allowed for inside dining. In all these facilities social distancing and face masks are required.

Upcoming Events

May 29, 2021: Silver King Scramble 50K Run from Miami to Globe

June 5, 2021: Rotary Round Mountain 5K Sunrise Challenge

Committee Recognition

I want to recognize the Library Committee this month. These are volunteers that operate as a subcommittee to the City Council. The members are Nancy Boyer (Chairman), Carolyn Sue Jones (Secretary), Claudia Armer, Patricia Dailey and Laura Jones.