COVID Positive Rate Around 5 Percent Here
Fayette County Emergency Management Chief Craig Moreau told Commissioners at a meeting last Thursday that the coronavirus positivity rate in Fayette County stands around five percent. That compares to about 16.4 percent statewide.
The positivity rate is the percentage of people who took a coronavirus test and tested positive.
At the July 9 Commissioners Court meeting, Moreau said the County is “burning through PPE (personal protection equipment) at a very rapid pace.” Moreau said the County has been able to procure masks and gloves for first responders from the state stockpile.
“At this point, we’re doing very well,” he said.
However, he warned that if state PPE reserves begin to run low, the County could wind up spending lot of tax dollars on those items from the open market.
“I think as a county, we are doing a pretty good job,” said County Judge Joe Weber. “We’ve got to learn to live with this virus. If we quit the finger pointing and blame, pull together, and toughen up a little bit, we’ll pull through this.”
After Moreau gave his report, Weber asked about the status of the disaster buyout funds that the State of Texas allocated for Fayette County following Hurricane Harvey in 2017. Those funds are to be used to purchase properties and homes that were flooded or destroyed by the hurricane three years ago and demolish the remaining structures. Moreau said the process for the county to receive those funds is moving “very slowly” since the State has shifted focus to deal with COVID-19.
“The hurricane was three years ago,” Weber said. “People are tired of waiting.”
Weber suggested that the County could begin demolishing the flooded structures while waiting for the funds to arrive. The item was only for discussion and commissioners took no action.
County Inspector Clint Sternadel gave his monthly report on septic system inspections and land subdivisions around the county. Sternadel said 37 new septic systems were installed in the month of June. That’s up from 21 in May. In addition, he performed 33 septic inspections last month, up from 12 in May. There were also 12 divisions of property in June, up from 5 in May. The numbers indicate a rising level of residential development in the unincorporated areas of Fayette County.
Fayette County. “Is it safe to say people are leaving the city and coming here?” Weber asked.
“Significantly,” Sternadel replied. Sternadel said many people who purchased land in Fayette County with plans of building a retirement home one day are now deciding to speed up those plans due to COVID-19.
During the public comment period at Thursday’s meeting, county resident Edward Alvarez addressed the court concerning the proposed pay raises for the two drug interdiction officers who work at the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office. Back in April, the Sheriff’s Office submitted a plan to the Commissioners Court to increase the salaries of the two officers using suspected drug money that the two officers routinely seize on Interstate 10. Under that plan, the salary of one officer would nearly double from $48,000 to $94,000 annually. The other officer would see his salary rise from roughly $47,000 to $75,000 annually.
“We need to pay the officers what they are worth,” Alvarez told the commissioners. “It’s on you if we lose them. They deserve a partial if not full pay raise. I’m sure we can find the money somewhere.”
Commissioners have not yet finalized next year’s County budget. Weber said they would consider the pay raises before they finish working on the budget.