Wasatch County leadership is working on the next phase in their response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
During an update to the Wasatch County Council, Health Department Director Randall Probst compared the county response to COVID-19 to a light bulb being dimmed down. Now he says they’re preparing to make gradual adjustments to brighten the metaphorical bulb.
“We started working with some of our businesses to start to identify what it’s going to look like as we start turning up that switch,” Probst explained. “It’s not going to be something that happens quickly. We’ve all come to the conclusion we’re going to live with this virus for some time. It’s not a matter of just putting an end to it, it's a matter of learning how to live with it effectively and safely.”
Probst says the Health Department, along with council members and the Heber Valley Chamber of Commerce have started meeting in groups with similar businesses in order to consult with each other.
“Start sharing insight and we can work together to see what kind of protective equipment is going to be needed long-term,” Probst continued. “What kind of cleaning and sanitation kinds of things will help them be ready to receive customers again. All of those processes are very important in order to ramp up safely, but still allow business to begin to function as we see this more in a stabilization phase.”
County Council member Mark Nelson says they’ve been working to get back to business as soon as they can.
“The local task force and certainly the County Council, which includes business owners, are very sensitive to the fact that we have to get business open,” Nelson said. “And we have to do it as fast as possible. Of course, our health is what's driving all this, and our safety but we have to get businesses open as quickly as we can.”
Nelson says if any business owner in the county has not heard from the chamber of commerce they should reach out and contact their office.
