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On today’s program:
Governor Northam discusses how a COVID vaccine may soon be distributed in Virginia
A Greene County woman was shot early Tuesday morning, the latest in a series of homicides in the region
Albemarle Board of Supervisors agrees to move forward with public hearing for a county cigarette tax
Charlottesville Chamber of Commerce hands out awards at Rebound Ball
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Governor Ralph Northam yesterday talked about how Virginia is preparing to distribute a COVID-19 vaccine. But first, he said that all regions of the Commonwealth are experiencing community spread.
“Our percent positivity is now at 8.3 percent,” Northam said. “It was at 5 percent just a few weeks ago. Our hospitals are seeing higher numbers of people hospitalized with COVID than they have during this pandemic.”
Northam said that while Virginia has had lower numbers than many states, the Commonwealth is connected to fellow jurisdictions.
“In our border communities, people routinely cross state lines to work, shop, and visit their families,” Northam said. “What happens in these other states affects us here in Virginia. For example, health officials believe Tennessee’s lack of a mask requirement and other restrictions has increased the spread of the virus in neighboring Virginia communities.”
Northam said that people are letting their guard down by not wearing masks in small gatherings.
“Virginia, you know the truth,” Northam said. “You don’t wear a mask, and you don’t social distance, and you think your right to ignore public health advice trumps your neighbor’s right to get infected by you, these cases will just continue going up.”
Northam did not impose any new restrictions yesterday. He said vaccines are on the way.
“I want to outline for Virginians what to expect in the coming weeks and months,” Northam said. “First of all, we have every reason to believe that these vaccines are safe. Remember that this is a global pandemic and the best science available worldwide has gone into developing and researching these vaccines.”
Northam drew upon his experience as a doctor to vouch for the process, but said Virginians needed to be patient while the logistics of delivering the vaccine to those who need it first are worked out.
“And last night the advisory committee on immunization practices voted to put health-care workers and residents of long-term care facilities first in line,” Northam said. “Virginia is planning a phased approach which aligns with CDC guidelines. As we get more vaccine, we will be able to prioritize other groups such as medically vulnerable people.”
Northam said Virginia is ready to mobilize.
“The Virginia Department of Health has been planning for this vaccine for several months starting in the summer,” Northam said. “They’ve worked with hospitals, long-term care facilities and providers in the community and have the systems in place to keep track of this large scale operation.”
Northam said if the Food and Drug Administration grants the emergency use request to approve, vaccines could ship to states as early as mid-December.
“Virginia expects to get about 70,000 doses from Pfizer in the first wave, enough to 70,000 individuals to get their first dose of the vaccine,” Northam said. This will depend on the procurement and use of ultra-cold storage facilities.
The current vaccines from both Pfizer and Moderna require two doses, so the success of this endeavor depends on those supply chains working out. Northam said vaccines from other companies are also working their way through the approvals process, and that he is personally ready.
“When our turn comes, my family and I will have no hesitancy about getting vaccinated, and I strongly encourage every Virginians to get the vaccine,” Northam said. “That is our only path to getting back to that near normal that we speak about.”
Northam said this will take months, so social distancing, mask-wearing, and hand-washing are necessary to help reduce transmission of the virus.
Today the Virginia Department of Health reports another 2,023 COVID-19 cases this morning. The seven-day average for positive PCR tests has increased to 8.8 percent today. One thing to note is that the VDH in the past seven days has processed half as many tests as they did the week before. (124,108 in the past seven days, 229,432 in the week before).
In the Blue Ridge Health District, there are another 22 cases reported today, and the seven-day daily average is 27 cases a day.
This weekend, the Blue Ridge Health District and UVA Health will offer 2,000 free self-administering COVID-19 tests at an event at Albemarle High School. The U.S. The Department of Health and Human Services is providing the tests, which will be available for people over the age of 13 from noon to 4 p.m. Pre-registration is required and can be done at this website. If you have questions, contact Dawn Niles at dn8a@virginia.edu or 434-924-2946.
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A Charlottesville woman is dead after being shot just after midnight on Tuesday in the 700 block of Celt Road in Greene County. Terry Beigie reports in the Greene County Record that 21-year-old Sara Hammond is the victim, but that the Sheriff's office had not yet ruled the incident as a homicide. In November, three people were murdered in Charlottesville in individually unrelated cases and suspects have been taken into custody in two of those incidents. Charlottesville Police continue to investigate the murder of 31-year-old Tanya Renee Wheeler.
In late November, the Daily Progress reported that Albemarle County Police arrested James Elliott Fitch in the killing of 55-year-old Yyvette Fitch near Covesville. Another Albemarle man was arrested earlier in the month and charged with the second degree murder of Madeline Colvin, according to a report from NBC29.
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The Albemarle Board of Supervisors has agreed to take the next step in a plan to levy a 40 cent tax on all packs of cigarettes sold in the county. Albemarle and the vast majority of Virginia’s other counties did not have that ability until legislation passed the General Assembly this year giving them the enabling authority. Lori Allshouse is the assistant chief financial officer for policy and partnership.
“Up until now, only Virginia’s cities and towns and two counties were able to impose a cigarette tax,” Allshouse said.
Allshouse recommended that Albemarle enter into a regional approach with some of its neighbors to prevent one locality from having a competitive advantage in the former of lower prices for cigarettes. She said Northern Virginia has a regional tax.
“Nineteen jurisdictions have gotten together to administer the tax in a regional way, with a regional board,” Allshouse said. On Tuesday, the Thomas Jefferson Planning District held a webinar on the topic, and executive director Chip Boyles told me in an email that they plan to invite a member of the Northern Virginia Cigarette Tax Board to speak to interested localities.
Allshouse acknowledged that revenue from the tax is likely to decline as cigarette smoking usage continues to drop. She suggested the Board could dedicate the tax to a specific purpose and added that the county will apply an equity lens to the decision.
Albemarle also received the ability to levy a tax on plastic bags, but Allshouse said the county wants to take more time to study the effect that would have on small businesses during the pandemic.
“A lot of times they have to program things different within their stores to be able to impose this tax so we’re pausing on bringing that forward to you today because of that,” Allshouse said.
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The Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce held its annual award dinner last night the only way such things really happen these days - virtually.
“Welcome to this year’s celebration of our business community, which has extra special meaning to all of us during this unbelievably crazy and challenging year,” said Elizabeth Cromwell, the Chamber president and CEO.
This year, the Chamber handed out special awards to recognize businesses that adapted to the pandemic. The PIVOT Award went out to:
Animal Connection
Brooks Family YMCA
Chick-Fil-A at Fashion Square
Culinary Concepts AB
Jefferson Area Board for Aging (JABA)
King Family Vineyards
Michie Tavern
Virginia Institute of Autism (VIA).
The PIVOT Award also went to marketing firm Bright Ideas. Here’s the company’s owner, Janet Baellow.
“It’s really ironic that we should win the PIVOT Award because during the past several months, which feels like several years to me, we heard the word ‘pivot’ so many times, ‘this company pivoted, this company didn’t pivot, this supplier pivoted, this supplier didn’t pivot’ and I got to the point with my staff where I said if I hear the word pivot one more time I’m going to scream. Well, I’m really happy to hear the word pivot in this context,” Baellow said the employee.
Another PIVOT award went to Culinary Concepts AB and chef Antwon Brinson.
“This year going into 2020, we were forecast to have one of the best years thus far in our business, and like businesses all around the world, in March, everything came to a screeching halt. And when I say a half, I mean nothing. Flat line. BOOOOOOP! Nothing.”
However, Brinson said he was gifted with more time, which gave him perspective.
“Where people see March as a barrier, I saw it as an opportunity, an opportunity to look at my community and see where the needs where, and create solutions that allow me to fill the gaps,” Brinson said. He ended up spending the early days of the pandemic figuring out how to create virtual classes, and he partnered with 4P Foods.
“They work with regional farmers, giving them an opportunity to sell their produce to business and consumers such as yourself,” Brinson said. “The next stage was how do we connect the dots? How do I educate people around the seasonality of produce? How do I inspire you to get in your kitchen and create something different?”
Attendees of the Chamber’s Rebound Ball also learned about progress made by the Network2Work program. Ridge Schuyler is the dean of community self-sufficiency at Piedmont Virginia Community College.
“Network2Work is built on the principle that a community thrives when all of its residents thrive and to thrive, families need enough incomes to meet their basic needs and begin building wealth,” Schuyler said. “Network2Work identifies people who have been left behind in our community using a novel network of neighborhood based connectors. These connectors match job seekers to employers like you who offer jobs and careers that pay family-sustaining wages.”
Governor Northam has recently announced he wants to take the program statewide. Schuyler said the local program has worked with over 1,000 people looking to recover from setbacks since 2014.
I’ll have more from the Rebound Ball in Friday’s newsletter.
In meetings today:
An advisory group overseeing creation of the capital improvement budget for Albemarle’s next fiscal year meets at 2 p.m. (meeting info)
The Natural Heritage Committee meets at 5:30 p.m. (meeting info)
The Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission meets at 7 p.m. (meeting info)
The Virginia Festival of the Book has another Shelf Life event. Mystery authors Jasmine Aimaq (The Opium Prince) and Nev March (Murder in Old Bombay) will discuss their debut novels with Meredith Cole. (link)
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December 3, 2020: Northam on COVID vaccine; Albemarle takes next step on taxing cigarettes