I want to start today by welcoming some new subscribers.
As background, this update started during the first days of the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to communicate critical public health and safety information on a daily basis to as many people as possible here in Carlsbad.
The newsletter took off, far beyond our city borders, as everyone struggled to keep up with the changing environment and understand all the COVID information coming at them from the news, social media and more.
Because the format was email, it was easy for people to reply, ask questions and provide feedback. The two-way nature of this ongoing conversation was and continues to be so valuable.
I knew right away if something was confusing or if people didn’t like how the city was handling something. But, frankly, this was the minority of comments.
Mostly, I was heartened by the goodwill and appreciation expressed by our community.
I even shared many of your inspirational stories, photos and videos showing how our residents and businesses were coping with the pandemic.
And I did my best to pass along reliable public health information from official sources.
Working together, we kept Carlsbad’s COVID-19 cases among the lowest in the county.
Over time, this newsletter began to feel like an extension of our community, one I could talk to directly, without the government jargon and bureaucracy that are often barriers to good, clear communication between government and those it serves. Eventually, we switched to a weekly format and began to introduce other topics of interest to the community, and now, thankfully, COVID news makes an appearance only occasionally.
I think we have all recognized some of the good things to come from an otherwise tragic and disruptive time in our lives.
This online community is one of them, and one I intend to keep going.
If you’re new to the email, now you know where it comes from.
If you’re not, I hope you know how meaningful your regular readership and engagement have been.
Emergency ending Feb. 28
Okay that was a long intro, but I think it’s on my mind because we are coming up on another major milestone, perhaps the last, of the COVID pandemic.
On Tuesday, the state of California will officially end the COVID-19 emergency proclamation.
This triggers the end of the County of San Diego emergency proclamation and the local city emergency proclamation.
Most of the state public health orders have already been rescinded, meaning most people won’t notice a change come March 1. The federal emergency is set to expire May 11. That will bring changes, which the Department of Health and Human Services summarizes on its website. I am sure we will learn more about the future of federal programs as we get closer to May.
Now, on to this week’s news, including:
3 ways you can stay safe during a storm
Local businesses stand together for traffic safety
New options for disposing of medicines and sharps
Spend Saturday night at the Schulman
Epic fun for tweens
Get involved: Upcoming meetings
