By Mike Hazlip–
The Citrus Heights City Council in a special session on Thursday voted unanimously to extend a proclamation declaring a local state of emergency in response to the novel coronavirus.
The vote came the same day three new deaths associated with COVID-19 were reported in Citrus Heights, bringing the total number of deaths in the city up to eight. Officials said the three new deaths were all “related to a congregate care setting,” but did not release additional details.
Three new COVID-related deaths reported in Citrus Heights
Mayor Jeff Slowey first issued the city’s emergency proclamation nearly two months ago on March 19. The procedural action taken to renew the proclamation is required every 60 days, until the state of emergency is terminated.
Meghan Huber, economic development and communications manager for the city, said the emergency proclamation allows the city to receive reimbursement from state and federal programs.
As of Saturday, she said the city has received $376,000 through a supplemental Community Development Block Grant as part of the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The grant has been partially allocated to help fund Citrus Heights nonprofit organizations and the Homeless Navigator Program.
Huber said the city also received an additional $85,000 through a Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding law enforcement grant, she said. Additional funding is expected, but “amounts are yet to be determined,” said Huber.
The May 14 vote to extend the city’s emergency declaration passed 4-0. Councilman Bret Daniels was not present for the meeting.
While Citrus Heights experienced new deaths associated with the coronavirus this week, overall hospitalizations and ICU cases have dropped significantly in Sacramento County since April. As of May 15, the county health department reported just 15 current hospitalizations countywide related to COVID-19, down from 77 in early April. ICU cases have also dropped to just five, from a high of 33 last month.
The consistent drop in hospitalizations has led to calls for a more rapid reopening of the economy, including from Sacramento County’s health chief, who said Wednesday that the county is “ready to open a little wider.”
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