City Signs Mutual Aid Agreement With Neighbors Due To Coronavirus

FREDERICKSBURG, VA — The City of Fredericksburg has signed a mutual aid agreement with Stafford, King George and Caroline counties that allows the four jurisdictions to share or combine equipment and personnel in an expedited manner during the coronavirus crisis.

The mutual aid agreement will broaden Fredericksburg's ability to use local government resources across jurisdictional boundaries, City Manager Tim Baroody said Friday in a video statement.

"In signing this agreement, we have effectively set ourselves up to quickly regionalize our services if needed. From IT to field crews, building oficials or financial staff, this agreement allows us to quickly shuffle services as needed," Baroody said. "In simple terms, if I need an IT professional, I can call Stafford and ask for personnel. And if they are not needed immediately in Stafford, they can temporarily assigned to us."

Baroody also noted that the city has developed four tiers of staffing levels. Tier 1 is normal operations. Last month, the city moved to tier 2, which created rolling shifts for staff members and the closure of government buildings to the public. Baroody said he expects the city to remain in tier 2 through at least next week unless the crisis rapidly worsens.

In a tier 3 scenario, city staff would largely vacate city buildings and a telework team of roughly 90 employees would work from home. Under this tier, staffers would be able to maintain city government operations through the use of secure access to systems, Baroody said.

Under a tier 4 scenario, Fredericksburg would have an emergency operations center with only essential government functions taking place.

In Virginia, the state Department of Health reported 2,012 positive cases of the coronavirus Friday, with 312 of those hospitalized and 46 deaths. The Fredericksburg area has 60 positive cases. Stafford County has 30 reported cases, followed by Spotsylvania County with 15, Fredericksburg with seven, King George County with seven and Caroline County with one case.

In response to the crisis, Baroody said the city is working to restructure the current recommended budget for the next fiscal year. "As we move from this health crisis near term, we will be more fully addressing the financial crisis that it leaves in its wake," he said. "We will be taking drastic measures to maintain core government services while likely pushing many wants to future budgets."

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The Fredericksburg City Council has scheduled a special meeting for Tuesday to discuss economic aid for local businesses. At the meeting, city council members will discuss certain tax relief policies, such as deferring some taxes to three months out. The city council will then hold its regular meeting a week later on April 14.

Fredericksburg City Council Member Billy Withers called on Fredericksburg residents to support local businesses and restaurants by ordering online for pickup and delivery. He also asked residents to donate to local relief funds if they are able.

For residents who venture outside, the city has created a new interactive map for people to find nearby hiking and walking trails across the city that they can use as long as they maintain a safe distance between each other.

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