City of Coos Bay Declares a State of Emergency, March 20

The City Manager has declared a state of emergency beginning March 19, 2020 and ending May 1, 2020. City Council will consider approving a resolution mirroring and superseding the emergency declaration on March 31, 2020. The declaration allows the city additional flexibility in terms of limiting access to public buildings, directing city staff, and delegating resources as well as acquiring needed resources related to health and safety. Having conferred with the Mayor, department heads, and City Council members, the City Manager finds that COVID-19 is a public health crisis that threatens the health, safety, and welfare of the city and the city’s citizens and constitutes an imminent threat of illness, human suffering, financial loss, and/or loss of life; and the City Manager finds that COVID-19 necessitates a state of emergency declaration. The full text of the declaration can be found on our website at Emergency Declaration. The city is taking steps to limit exposure to and spread of COVID-19 (novel coronavirus). In line with state restrictions and federal guidelines, the city will be closing City Hall to the public during normal business hours for the foreseeable future. The majority of city services and day to day operations will continue. All board and committee meetings will be canceled for the time being. At this time, the next scheduled City Council meeting will take place on March 31, 2020, and we will be utilizing social distancing modifications including reducing meeting length and increased space between chairs. The city is working on establishing a system for citizens to attend the meeting online. These changes aim to protect the health of our community as well as our work force, so we can continue to provide crucial city services to our customers. Our management team is meeting frequently along with our community partners to share information and discuss any modifications to our operations. The situation is continually evolving, and we may need to make additional changes in the future.