Coronavirus In Colorado: Local Governments Declare States Of Emergency

(CBS4) - Across Colorado, local governments have declared states of emergency in response to the spread of coronavirus. Emergency declarations expedite emergency resources, including funding to help local governments protect vulnerable populations and better contain the outbreak.

Arapahoe County

Arapahoe County issued an emergency declaration Friday to unlock resources, organize county response strategies and provide additional assistance for municipalities. The declaration is authorized for seven days and can be extended.

"During an emergency, which includes a pandemic, the county is charged with taking the lead in coordinating efforts," said Board Chair Nancy Sharpe. "This action was not taken lightly but it is the necessary trigger for that to happen."

Last week, Arapahoe County opened its Emergency Operations Center, which coordinates efforts with Tri-County Health and other local, state and national agencies to direct operations, resources and personnel to deal with incidents such as the coronavirus.

On Wednesday, Arapahoe County joined forces with Tri-County Health and Adams and Douglas Counties to provide a virtual town hall where residents in the tri-county area asked questions and received answers from health experts about coronavirus. A recording of the town hall is available on the county website.

City of Arvada

The city of Arvada declared a State of Emergency Friday. The declaration must be reviewed by Arvada City Council within seven days.

Officials in Arvada will postpone, suspend or cancel non-essential city events, community gatherings, and engagements involving more than 250 people, and in many cases, those with fewer than 250 people, until May 4.

The cancellations include the Arvada Kite Festival on April 4. Passport services are suspended along with neighborhood meetings at city facilities.

The city is posting local updates regarding coronavirus on their website.

Aurora

The city of Aurora declared a state of emergency on Friday and closed a number of city facilities, including libraries and recreation centers beginning March 14. The Aurora Municipal Center will remain open for individual and business customers.

All city-organized public events taking place between March 14 and April 30 will be canceled. The only public meetings taking place are City Council meetings, Civil Service Commission meetings, Planning and Zoning Commission meetings, and Board of Adjustment and Appeals meetings.

Outdoor recreation spaces and the Morrison Nature Center, Senac Creek Nature Center and the Plains Conservation Center remain open until further notice. For more information, visit the city of Aurora website.

City of Boulder

Boulder city officials will close all city municipal buildings that include age well centers, libraries, recreation centers and the Ranger Cottage on Friday. Programs, classes and drop-in activities will also be suspended during this time. These closures and cancellations are in place until March 29, 2020

Flatirons Golf Course, Boulder Reservoir and city parks will remain open for self-directed activities and continue to practice strong sanitation practices. Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) trails also will remain open.

City Council meetings will be held and televised as scheduled. All other boards and commission meetings are canceled through March 29, 2020.

Recreation Centers are closed through March 29. All library branches will be closed through March 29. For more information, visit the city of Boulder website.

City of Brighton

The city of Brighton is temporarily closing all city facilities to the public effective Monday, March 16 through Sunday, March 22. City buildings will still be open to employees and operations will continue but visitors will not be allowed in the buildings.

"The health and safety of our residents and employees is our top concern," Acting City Manager Marv Falconburg said. "While we know this will change the way we operate for the time being, we are confident that our employees will still be able to provide critical services to our residents while practicing social distancing."

The Brighton Police Department will remain open. Essential public safety services will continue and measures are in place to continue non-emergency operations.

The Brighton Fire administrative office is temporarily closed to the public starting March 13 to be proactive in preventing exposure to the public and personnel. Staff is working remotely and will respond to emails and phone calls in a timely manner.

City and County of Broomfield

Officials are closing the Broomfield Community and Senior Center, Paul Derda Recreation Center, Library, Depot Museum, and inventHQ facilities to the public to include all programs, events, and classes. The closure will start Saturday, March 14 and be in place for a minimum of two weeks.

Boards and Commission meetings will also be canceled during this two-week period. All classes and job fairs will be suspended until further notice. Broomfield's Motor Vehicle Office will remain open, based on the state's direction.

For more information, including resources for seniors, visit Broomfield.org.

City of Centennial

Municipal Court is suspended in Centennial, along with passport appointments, senior commission events, weekly meet the Mayor meeting, and all boards and commission meetings.

The Centennial City Council meeting on March 16 is canceled. For more information on meeting and event changes, visit centennialco.gov.

Commerce City

Commerce City has issued a Local Disaster Emergency Declaration. This declaration allows the city to effectively deploy resources and coordinate with federal, state, and county emergency agencies and public health agencies regarding response, recovery, and mitigation efforts.

All City of Commerce City facilities, including Municipal Court, remain closed to the public through March 29. Court dates that take place during the closure will be rescheduled. All parks, recreation and golf programs and activities are suspended through at least March 29. This schedule is subject to change, as the city will evaluate whether to reopen facilities to the public and resume normal operating hours after that time.

The city has created a web page where residents can stay informed on local preparation, canceled or postponed event information, additional resources and more.

Denver

In Denver, all public events that were scheduled to happen at city-owned and operated facilities through April 12 have been canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak. Mayor Michael Hancock announced the measure on Friday.

READ MORE: Coronavirus In Denver: All City-Owned Facilities To Cancel Events Through April 12

Eagle County Sheriff's Office

The Eagle County Sheriff's Office will temporarily suspend some of its administrative services. Civil process services will be limited to court-ordered writs only and public fingerprints will only be completed for Concealed Handgun Permit applications. Officials said these changes to services will remain in place until further notice.

Eagle, Garfield, and Pitkin Counties

Eagle, Garfield, and Pitkin County are issuing a Public Health order to minimize the health impacts of COVID-19. Under this order, Public Health prohibits large gatherings and events of more than 50 people unless measures are taken by event organizers to minimize risk.

The Public Health order will become effective immediately and will be revisited on April 8, 2020. An event does not include restaurants, as long as restaurants adhere to the requirements for social distancing.

City of Englewood

The city of Englewood declared a local disaster emergency, which activates the city's Emergency Operations Plan. The declaration will enact cooperation and coordination efforts with federal, state and county emergency and public health agencies regarding response, recovery and mitigation endeavors.

"This declaration will allow the city to respond with more flexibility during this evolving outbreak and allow Englewood businesses to access federal funding related to the U.S. government's response to COVID-19," said Englewood City Manager Shawn Lewis. "Public safety, health and welfare are of the utmost concern for myself and Englewood's City Council," he added."

City officials have closed the Malley Recreation Center, Englewood Recreation Center, and the Englewood Public Library. The State of Emergency will remain in effect no longer than seven days unless an extension is approved by the City Council.

Town of Frisco

Starting on Saturday, the Frisco Adventure Park tubing and ski/ride hill, the Frisco Nordic Center, the Frisco/Copper Visitor Information Center, and the Frisco Historic Park will be closed. During these closures, all of these facilities will undergo more cleaning and sanitation. There have been no identified threats to public health in these locations, and these closures will be re-evaluated in the next week.

The Frisco Nordic Center trails will continue to be groomed and will be free and open to the public. Starting on Monday, Frisco Government buildings will remain staffed, but will be open to the public by appointment only.

This weekend's Frisco BrewSki was canceled and going forward a number of other Frisco events have also been canceled, including the Bubble Gum Race Series, historic lectures, historic tours and the Frisco Easter Egg Hunt. The Town has also changed the candidate forum scheduled for March 17 2020 to an online question and answer format. Candidates have been asked to reply to written questions, and their responses will be posted online at FriscoGov.com.

City of Greeley

The city of Greeley is closing public access to all non-emergency facilities at the close of business Friday. The closures will remain in effect through March 30 and are listed on the city's website.

State officials are encouraging the cancellation of public gatherings in Colorado with more than 250 people.  City officials strongly encourage any gatherings of fewer than 250 people to practice social distancing.

All essential city operations and staff — including, police, fire department, water, sewer, and key infrastructure will continue functioning. Emergency services will continue.

Greeley's Municipal Court is closed along with all other non-public safety facilities. Individuals scheduled to appear during this closure should call 970-350-9230 as soon as city facilities re-open to reschedule their appearance.

City of Littleton

Officials in Littleton are suspending of most of the city's public programs. The Bemis Library and the Littleton Museum will be open, but activities are suspended until further notice. For more information, visit the city's website.

For those who were summoned for jury duty in March, they do not need to report as all jury trials will be rescheduled. Upcoming court hearings in March and April can be rescheduled by contacting the court immediately at courtweb@littletongov.org or by calling 303-795-3837.

All Foothills Park & Recreation District facilities will be closing to the public effective Saturday, March 14 - Sunday, March 29. Classes run by Foothills will be prorated and credited back to your account. Permits and rentals will be refunded.

Foothills Golf Course and Meadows Golf Club, as well as all District parks will remain open to the public. Organized activities at these spaces are cancelled.

Loveland

Loveland City Manager Steve Adams signed a declaration of local disaster Friday. The city is closing public facilities from March 13 through March 27.

Loveland Municipal Court is also closed. Court proceedings will be postponed beginning March 17 and continuing through March 27. The city will provide updates on their website.

City of Northglenn

The city of Northglenn issued an emergency declaration Friday. Officials are closing all city facilities to the public for two weeks beginning Saturday, March 14 through Sunday, March 29.

Facilities include: City Hall; the Recreation Center, Senior Center and Theatre; Maintenance and Operations; Water Treatment Facility; and the Wastewater Treatment Plant. The Justice Center will have limited public access.

All city events, activities and meetings are cancelled through March 29. Municipal Court will take place on March 17, but no other in-person court services during the two week span.

Essential services like public safety, water, wastewater, snow removal and trash/recycling pickup will not be affected and continue as usual. The city will update information on its website.

Pitkin County

Most county staff will be working remotely until further and all meetings with staff will be conducted via email, telephone or video conferencing. Pitkin County Commissioner meetings will be televised on Comcast Channel 11 and via online streaming at pitkincounty.com.

"Our Continuity of Operations Plan is in full swing," said County Manager Jon Peacock. "Admittedly there are many issues we did not anticipate with the onslaught of this novel virus in our community but our dedicated public servants are now working around-the-clock to not only try to hunt down and reduce the spread of Coronavirus here but to maintain all essential government operations. I'm humbled by how well my staff is managing during this crisis and ask that our community be compassionate and patient as we keep all essential services afloat."

For the most up-to-date local information, visit pitkincounty.com/coronavirus. You can also call the Pitkin County Coronavirus Hotline with questions at 970-429-6186.

RTD

The Regional Transportation District is restricting public access to RTD buildings, including its headquarters. The agency is requiring patrons inside the RTD Bus Concourse at Union Station board the first available bus to their destination and should limit the time they spend to no more than 10 minutes prior to the departure of their bus. This is a temporary modification to the existing code of conduct that allows passengers to wait up to two hours for their bus.

Summit County

Summit County has filed a local emergency disaster declaration with the State of Colorado to support its coronavirus response. The declaration is an administrative tool that can help facilitate access to funding and other resources.

The declaration will be in effect until March 19, unless extended by an action of the Board of County Commissioners. The board will consider extending the time frame during its regular meeting on March 17, which begins at 1:30 p.m.

Summit County officials say it was important to file the declaration, because the costs of responding to and recovering from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic will likely be far in excess of the county's available resources.

People with questions about COVID-19 can call the CO HELP Hotline at 1-877-462-2911. Community updates are being shared on the county's website.

City of Thornton

On Saturday, officials in Thornton will close the Margaret W. Carpenter Recreation Center, Trail Winds Recreation Center, and the Thornton Active Adult Center until further notice.

Starting March 16, 2020, all Thornton government buildings will be closed to the public. The status for these buildings will be reevaluated in two weeks.

Officials said no cases of COVID-19 have been reported or linked to staff or customers in any Thornton facilities. Thornton staff will conduct a thorough disinfection-cleaning of facilities while they are closed.

In addition, Thornton's first responders have implemented new safety protocols when responding to calls for service due to coronavirus. For more information, visit the city of Thornton website.

Town of Vail

The town of Vail filed an Administrative Disaster Declaration, which activates the town's plans for emergency situations for a seven-day period, ending on March 20. The Vail Town Council will consider extending that time-frame at its Town Council meeting on March 17.

For more information, visit the town of Vail website.

West Metro Fire
West Metro Fire is closing the district's administrative offices to the public. The dispatch center is headquartered in the building and handles emergency calls for eight police and fire agencies.

People who have business with the district can do so by making an appointment and following the screening procedure prior to entering the building. Please call (303) 989-4307 to make an appointment.

West Metro has also suspended all district-related activities, including fire station visits, apparatus visits, car seat fittings, and public outreach. In order to continually provide the highest level of service, West Metro asks that if you have non-life threatening flu like symptoms please contact your primary care physician (PCP) prior to calling 911.

City of Wheat Ridge

The city of Wheat Ridge is closing the Wheat Ridge Recreation Center, the Anderson Building, & the Active Adult Center for two weeks as of Sun, March 15, 2020. The closures may be extended depending on the spread of coronavirus.

Officials in Wheat Ridge will update the city's website with any new announcements regarding the coronavirus outbreak.

Town of Windsor

The town of Windsor Parks, Recreation & Culture Department has suspended all programs and activities through Monday, April 6. The Windsor Community Recreation Center and Art & Heritage Center will also close to the public.

The Community Recreation Center will resume normal operating hours on Monday, April 6. The Art & Heritage Center will resume normal operating hours on Thursday, April 9 at 3 p.m. All other town facilities remain open at this time.