Coronavirus Braintree: Town Buildings Closed

BRAINTREE, MA — Mayor Charles Kokoros has closed all town buildings in an effort to slow the spread of the new coronavirus. The Town Council also canceled its meeting scheduled for Tuesday and plans to re-scheduled meetings for online or over the phone.

Residents were encouraged to use online resources at the town's website for services such as permitting, summer camp registration, bill payments, dog registrations and more.

Residents can also use the drop boxes located outside town hall to pay taxes, water and sewer, and trash fees. Staff will be on site at all locations and available by phone to answer questions regarding continued operations. General questions should be directed to the Mayor's Office at 781-794-8100. For specific questions, here are the numbers for town departments:

• Assessors: 781-794-8050
• Building Division: 781-794-8070
• Elder Affairs: 781-848-1963
• Planning & Community Development: 781-794-8230
• Public Works: 781-794-8254
• Recreation and Community Events: 781-794-8900
• Retirement Board: 781-794-8210
• School Department: 781-380-0130
• Thayer Public Library: 781-848-0405
• Town Clerk: 781-794-8240
• Town Hall: 781-794-8000
• Treasurer/Collector: 781-794-8130
• Veterans Services: 781-794-8217

Elder Affairs

Kokoros and representatives from the Health Department met with representatives from local nursing homes, long-term care facilities, assisted and independent living facilities, adult day care centers, including the Marge Crispin Center, the Braintree Housing Authority and the Department of Elder Affairs to discuss how to protect high risk communities like the elderly. Steps being taken include, in some cases, prohibiting visitors to these facilities, conducting health assessments of vendors and employees, increasing cleaning protocols and restricting the use of social spaces. Residents are encouraged to contact these facilities directly to confirm current emergency protocols.

Scheduled transportation for medical appointments will continue pending further notice.

Library

The library will be staffed during normal hours to continue providing services to the community. These services include:

• Extending the loan period for items up to four weeks with a waiver of all fines.
• Curbside Pick Up and Drop Off will be available Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• On-Line services will remain available at thayerpubliclibrary.org.

Independent Grocery Stores

In light of reports of empty shelves in grocery stores around the nation, Kokoros and representatives from the Health Department met with several local grocers. These organizations have established emergency response plans to ensure they are able to continue providing services, including food and merchandise available for purchase.

As demand for certain items increases, these organizations are working with suppliers and making efforts to replenish their inventory as soon as possible. Consumers may begin to see limits on quantities of purchases of paper goods and other supplies in high demand to ensure that everyone has access to these items.

"We urge everyone to respect these quantity limits to help ensure that all residents can find the products they need," Kokoros said in a statement. "Stores will be refilling high-demand products as quickly as they can."

Residents are also urged to take advantage of delivery and in-store pick up services where available.

Schools

All schools in Massachusetts are closed until at least April 6. Kokoros said school officials are working to create grab and go food options for students, Monday through Friday for breakfast and lunch. More information is forthcoming from the Superintendent’s Office.

Emergency Services

The Braintree police and fire departments will continue to run operations as usual. In conjunction with our public safety partners at Brewster Ambulance, dispatcher procedures have been updated to include travel and symptom-related questions. and first responders will continue to provide residents with all necessary public safety services while taking precautions to limit the spread of the virus.

Prevention

In the coming week, town officials said they will meet with a number of local service providers including day care centers, faith based organizations, social clubs, pharmacies, transportation providers and health clubs to share best practices as the situation continues to evolve.

Kokoros met with representatives from the South Shore Plaza to discuss their enhanced sanitation measures including providing hand sanitizers and educational signage at every entrance and increasing resources dedicated to sanitizing high touch points on the property.

Additionally, Kokoros plans to meet with the Chamber of Commerce to determine ways to strengthen and support the local business community.

"It is essential that we proactively collaborate with our local service providers to allow them to continue meeting the needs of our community while taking necessary precautions to limit the spread of COVID-19," Kokoros said. "I am thankful to these organizations for partnering with the town in its proactive approach to limiting the exposure of COVID-19 within our community."