It has been a while since we have provided an update concerning the Town’s ongoing COVID19 response.  With reported active cases hovering over 3 dozen for the last few weeks and vaccinations efforts beginning to progress it is time to resume occasional updates.  Much of what is included was gathered from other organizations such as Weeks Medical Center and The NH Department of Health and Human Services.  I do encourage you to visit these sites as this has been a very fluid response with plans changing weekly, if not daily.
 
First, an update on our active cases in Town.  We have been consistently trending up in our active cases, peaking at 40 last week.  I know this is concerning for many people but I want to assure you that this does not mean we are seeing substantial community spread.  Although there are several cases of people in the community included in these daily numbers more than half are residents of Country Village Nursing Home.  Country Village is experiencing an outbreak which dates back to shortly after Thanksgiving.  The staff has been actively treating those residents that become infected and managing the rest of the population to minimize any spread.  There work has paid off with daily cases beginning to decrease.  More good news is the facility began there vaccinations last week and expect to have that completed by next month.
 
The State’s vaccination plan as now opened up to the next eligible population, the Tier 1b group.  This population includes:

• People 65 years of age or older
• The medically vulnerable at significantly higher risk with 2 or more conditions (including family caregivers of those medically vulnerable individuals, those 16 years of age or younger not eligible to receive the vaccine.)
• Residents and staff of residential facilities for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities
• Corrections officers and staff working in correctional facilities
• First responders and health workers not already vaccinated.

If you are in any of these population groups you can register for you vaccine by first visiting vaccines.nh.gov or by calling 211 if you do not have an email address.  Vaccination sites will be set up at various North Country Healthcare facility clinics.
 
As for the Town, our Emergency Management Team has been and continues to stay busy responding to this emergency.  A few activities we have been and continue to be involved in are:

• The Team still meets several times a week to discuss, plan, and implement measures to respond to this emergency;
• Our Health and Police Departments have investigated several instances of non-compliance with the Governor’s Orders and passed on that information to the Attorney General’s Office;
• Provided input and feedback to the local school districts on their reopening plans and continue to offer support throughout the year;
• Created protective measures throughout the Town Departments to safeguard staff and operations;
• Assisted businesses and individuals with their response to positive cases in their workplace; and
• Held vaccine clinics for the area’s Public Safety Officials and medical workers.

 
I hope this brief summary gives you some comfort that although you have not been provided more frequent updates the Town has continued to be actively engaged in this response here and throughout the region.  I do hope to follow this with more information as it becomes available and time allows.  If you do have questions feel free to reach out to me, Benjamin Gaetjens-Oleson, at 603-788-3391 or planning@lancasternh.org.
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Talking Up Lancaster
Lancaster Public Meeting – Wed., Oct. 21 at 5:30 p.m.,  Town Hall
 
Lancaster residents are invited to learn about an ongoing  marketing project to answer the question “How do we talk about Lancaster?” The marketing project is part of a multi-faceted community revitalization effort that the Northern Forest Center has been working on with the town for the last few years, the most visible part of which is the current rehabilitation of the prominent Parker J. Noyes building on Main Street.  
 
Through the marketing project, the Center and a volunteer committee have engaged a marketing consultant, Nimble Forces of Vermont, to help us refine how we communicate about Lancaster - its story, amenities and assets, and its strengths.  The goal is to create shared language we can all use in future conversations and communications by the Town, by local businesses recruiting new workers, by realtors attracting new residents.  Come learn about the process, the conclusions, and the proposed language and designs to represent Lancaster. 
 
For everyone’s safety and comfort masks are encouraged and seating is subject to social distancing practices.