The Village of Sister Bay is a friendly, thriving community where residents and visitors alike enjoy the natural beauty of its surroundings enhanced by well-maintained parks and the natural environment. The unique charm of the Village’s waterfront, library and businesses are enjoyed and utilized by all. As Northern Door County’s year-round village, it balances the needs of a growing retirement community, while attracting and supporting its younger population with a viable economy. The Village has carefully controlled growth to maintain its charm, character and natural beauty.

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For Immediate Release Date: 3/23/2020
Contact: Daniel Kane – Emergency Management Director 920-746-7195

Door County Health Advisory to Seasonal and Second Homeowners

Pursuant to WI. Stat. 252.03(1), the Door County Public Health Officer has issued a Travel Advisory Order due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the national spread of the COVID-19 virus:

1. Due to high community transmission in certain area of the state and across the nation, Door County Public Health is recommending that you stay in your permanent home area if you have a seasonal or second home in Door County. Door County has well trained and capable medical personnel, but staffing is limited and stretched thin during this emergency. We make this statement in hopes of limiting the demands placed on local hospitals, emergency personnel, nurses and doctors.
2. People who have seasonal homes in Door County, please stay at your winter homes at this time. If you are already back in Door County you are encouraged to self-quarantine for fourteen (14) days.
3. Door County has a large population of older adults and others who are identified to have a higher risk of serious complications from COVID-19. It is our top priority to keep people in Door County healthy and safe.
4. On March 17, 2020, the Door County Board of Supervisors issued a countywide COVID-19 Emergency Declaration. Please be aware that additional health and travel restrictions may be imposed during this time.
5. This is an ever-changing and very serious health situation and Door County needs to be diligent in its response. Door County Public Health is reminding all county residents to practice good social distancing and to self isolate as much as possible. Individuals should limit trips out of the house to essential travel.

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ALL VOTERS IN THE VILLAGE ARE ENCOURAGED TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF CURBSIDE VOTING ON APRIL 7, 2020.

Arrangements have now been made for the provision of curbside voting opportunities at the Village’s official polling place – the Sister Bay-Liberty Grove Fire Station on Mill Road. All voters are encouraged to take advantage of that service if at all possible.  For further information, please refer to the following diagram, or call the Village Clerk, Heidi Teich, at 920-854-4118 prior to election day.

VILLAGE OF SISTER BAY – COVID-19 (CORONAVIRUS) INFORMATION

GENERAL INQUIRIES:

The Village of Sister Bay has declared a Health Emergency regarding the spread of COVID-19. Village officials are working diligently to assist the state in preventing the spread of Coronavirus. We ask that the public practice “social distancing” in an effort to prevent the spread. The article that appears at the end of this notice discusses what “social distancing” actually is.

The Village Administration building will be closed to the public indefinitely. Please visit the Village of Sister Bay Website and select the “contact us” tab to reach a Village official. We likely can complete your request or transaction without in-person interactions.

PAYMENTS:

For utility payments, please use xPress Bill Pay or through EFT transfer. If this matter is urgent, please contact our Utilities Clerk via email ([email protected]) or use the drop box located outside the entrance to the Administration Building to submit payments (available 24/7). Please contact the office, 920-854-4118, for information regarding any other payments.

VILLAGE GOVERNMENT MEETINGS:

All non-essential Village committee meetings will be cancelled indefinitely, effective immediately. Staff will be severely limiting group contact for meetings and conferences. Village Board and Plan Commission meetings will continue at this time. We are encouraging the general public to consider foregoing in-person attendance in favor of viewing the recorded meetings on the Village’s website. Comments submitted via email or post will be included in the minutes for board meetings.

VILLAGE BUILDING CLOSURES:

The Village Administration building is closed, except for absentee voting/registration for the April 7th election. However, we are urging voters to avoid appearing in person by using mailed ballots. Village staff will remain working, either at the Village Administration building or remotely. You can contact Village officials at 920-854-4118. Face-to-face meetings are discouraged.

The Library will be closed per County orders indefinitely. The Village Hall and the Fire Station will also be closed to the public at this time.

VILLAGE PUBLIC PARKS:

Use of park facilities and equipment is discouraged and may be considered for closure. We ask that you adhere to the “Social distancing” practices when in a public setting.

ABSENTEE VOTING: April 7, 2020, Spring Election and Presidential Preference Vote

ALL VOTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO VOTE ABSENTEE BY MAIL

Requesting a Ballot by Mail:  To request a ballot be mailed to you at home, either 1) visit https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us/ and click the tab for Vote Absentee.  Follow the directions presented; or 2) email [email protected] stating the election(s) you wish to receive ballots for and the address you would like them mailed to.  Photo ID is required with your emailed request. The deadline for requesting a ballot by mail is 5:00 p.m. on April 2, 2020.  However, in order to ensure that your ballot is received at the polling place on April 7, 2020 it is recommended that you submit your request as early as possible.

Registering to Vote: To register to vote online at https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us/ the address on your driver’s license or identification card must be current. You can change your address online with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. Please allow 24 hours after you change your address with the Department of Transportation before registering to vote online. You can also print your application from this site and mail it to the Clerk’s office. Proof of residence is required with your mailed application. The deadline to register to vote online or by mail is March 18, 2020. After this date, you must appear in person to register. Please call Heidi at 920-854-4118 for more information on deadlines and proof of residence.

GENERAL HEALTH INFO:

Prevent the spread – wash your hands regularly for at least 20 seconds with soap and water, cover your coughs and sneezes, and stay home when you are ill. The recommendation of the Wisconsin Department of Health Services is if you have traveled to a country with a Level 3 Travel Health Notice for COVID-19, you will be asked to self-quarantine for 14 days after returning to Wisconsin. If you have a fever, cough and shortness of breath, seek medical attention and stay home. This means do not go to school, work, enter public buildings, or attend large gatherings. Please see the Wisconsin Department of Health Services website for more details on self-quarantining: https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/covid-19/index.htm.

Social Distancing: This is Not a Snow Day

Originally published by Ariadne Labs on March 13, 2020 | Updated March 17, 2020

I know there is some confusion about what to do next in the midst of this unprecedented time of a pandemic, school closures, and widespread social disruption. As a primary care physician and public health leader, I have been asked by a lot of people for my opinion, and I will provide it below based on the best information available to me today. These are my personal views, and my take on the necessary steps ahead.

What I can clearly say is that what we do, or don’t do, over the next week will have a massive impact on the local and perhaps national trajectory of coronavirus. We are only about 11 days behind Italy and generally on track to repeat what is unfortunately happening there and throughout much of the rest of Europe very soon.

At this point, containment through contact tracing and increased testing is only part of the necessary strategy. We must move to pandemic mitigation through widespread, uncomfortable, and comprehensive social distancing. That means not only shutting down schools, work (as much as possible), group gatherings, and public events, but also making daily choices to stay away from each other as much as possible to Flatten The Curve below.

 

Source: https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2020/3/6/21161234/coronavirus-covid-19-science-outbreak-ends-endemic-vaccine

Our health system will not be able to cope with the projected numbers of people who will need acute care should we not muster the fortitude and will to socially distance each other starting now. On a regular day, we have about 45,000 staffed ICU beds nationally, which can be ramped up in a crisis to about 95,000. Even moderate projections suggest that if current infectious trends hold, our capacity (locally and nationally) may be overwhelmed as early as mid-late April. Thus, the only strategies that can get us off this concerning trajectory are those that enable us to work together as a community to maintain public health by staying apart.

The wisdom, and necessity, of this more aggressive, early, and extreme form of social distancing can be found here. I would urge you to take a minute to walk through the interactive graphs — they will drive home the point about what we need to do now to avoid a worse crisis later. Historical lessons and experiences of countries worldwide have shown us that taking these actions early can have a dramatic impact on the magnitude of the outbreak. So what does this enhanced form of social distancing mean on a daily basis, when schools are cancelled?

Here are some steps you can start taking now to keep your family safe and do your part to avoid a worsening crisis:

1. We need to push our local, state, and national leaders to close ALL schools and public spaces and cancel all events and public gatherings now.

A local, town by town response won’t have the adequate needed effect. We need a statewide, nationwide approach in these trying times. Contact your representative and your governor to urge them to enact statewide closures. As of today, six states have already done so. Your state should be one of them. Also urge leaders to increase funds for emergency preparedness and make widening coronavirus testing capacity an immediate and top priority. We also need legislators to enact better paid sick leave and unemployment benefits to help nudge people to make the right call to stay at home right now.

2. No kid playdates, parties, sleepovers, or families/friends visiting each other’s houses and apartments.

This sounds extreme because it is. We are trying to create distance between family units and between individuals. It may be particularly uncomfortable for families with small children, kids with differential abilities or challenges, and for kids who simply love to play with their friends. But even if you choose only one friend to have over, you are creating new links and possibilities for the type of transmission that all of our school/work/public event closures are trying to prevent. The symptoms of coronavirus take four to five days to manifest themselves. Someone who comes over looking well can transmit the virus. Sharing food is particularly risky — I definitely do not recommend that people do so outside of their family.

We have already taken extreme social measures to address this serious disease — let’s not actively co-opt our efforts by having high levels of social interaction at people’s houses instead of at schools or workplaces. Again — the wisdom of early and aggressive social distancing is that it can flatten the curve above, give our health system a chance to not be overwhelmed, and eventually may reduce the length and need for longer periods of extreme social distancing later (see what has transpired in Italy and Wuhan). We need to all do our part during these times, even if it means some discomfort for a while.

3. Take care of yourself and your family, but maintain social distance.

Exercise, take walks/runs outside, and stay connected through phone, video, and other social media. But when you go outside, do your best to maintain at least six feet between you and non-family members. If you have kids, try not to use public facilities like playground structures, as coronavirus can live on plastic and metal for two to three days, and these structures aren’t getting regularly cleaned.

Going outside will be important during these strange times, and the weather is improving. Go outside every day if you are able, but stay physically away from people outside your family or roommates. If you have kids, try playing a family soccer game instead of having your kids play with other kids, since sports often mean direct physical contact with others. And though we may wish to visit elders in our community in person, I would not visit nursing homes or other areas where large numbers of the elderly reside, as they are at highest risk for complications and mortality from coronavirus.

Social distancing can take a toll (after all, most of us are social creatures). The CDC offers tips and resources to reduce this burden, and other resources offer strategies to cope with the added stress during this time.

We need to find alternate ways to reduce social isolation within our communities through virtual means instead of in-person visits.

4. Reduce the frequency of going to stores, restaurants, and coffee shops for the time being.

Of course trips to the grocery store will be necessary, but try to limit them and go at times when they are less busy. Consider asking grocery stores to queue people at the door in order to limit the number of people inside a store at any one time. Remember to wash your hands thoroughly before and after your trip. And leave the medical masks and gloves for the medical professionals — we need them to care for those who are sick. Maintain distance from others while shopping — and remember that hoarding supplies negatively impacts others so buy what you need and leave some for everyone else. Take-out meals and food are riskier than making food at home given the links between the people who prepare food, transport the food, and you. It is hard to know how much that risk is, but it is certainly higher than making it at home. But you can and should continue to support your local small businesses (especially restaurants and other retailers) during this difficult time by buying gift certificates online that you can use later.

5. If you are sick, isolate yourself, stay home, and contact a medical professional.

If you are sick, you should try to isolate yourself from the rest of your family within your residence as best as you can. If you have questions about whether you qualify or should get a coronavirus test, you can call your primary care team and/or consider calling the Massachusetts Department of Public Health at 617.983.6800 (or your state’s department of health if you are outside of Massachusetts). Don’t just walk into an ambulatory clinic — call first so that they can give you the best advice — which might be to go to a drive-through testing center or a virtual visit on video or phone. Of course, if it is an emergency call 911.

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I realize there is a lot built into these suggestions, and that they represent a real burden for many individuals, families, businesses, and communities. Social distancing is hard and may negatively impact many people, especially those who face vulnerabilities in our society. I recognize that there is structural and social inequity built in and around social distancing recommendations. We can and must take steps to bolster our community response to people who face food insecurity, domestic violence, and housing challenges, along with the many other social disadvantages.

I also realize that not everyone can do everything. But we have to try our absolute best as a community, starting today. Enhancing social distancing, even by one day, can make a large difference.

We have a preemptive opportunity to save lives through the actions we take right now that we will not have in a few weeks. It is a public health imperative. It is also our responsibility as a community to act while we still have a choice and while our actions can have the greatest impact.

We cannot wait.

 

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THE VILLAGE IS CURRENTLY ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS
FOR A DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS AS WELL DOCKHANDS!!

 The Village is currently accepting applications for a Director of Public Works as well as Dockhands.
If you are interested in either of those positions, please submit an Employment Application ASAP.
Further information can be obtained by clicking on the following hyperlink:

Click Here to Access the Director of Public Works and the Marina “Help Wanted” Ads

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DOG LICENSES

PLEASE PURCHASE YOUR 2020 DOG LICENSE BEFORE APRIL 1. 

A late fee of $25.00 will be charged beginning April 1, 2020 per Sister Bay Village Resolution 407.

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