PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MAY 5, 2020
TOWN OF GROTON – COVID-19 UPDATE
The Groton Select Board and Groton Board of Health have taken action to further protect the public in light of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Specifically, the following action has been taken by both Boards:
- The Board of Health has voted unanimously to ratify the Executive Order of the Governor of the Commonwealth to require that masks be worn in all public buildings, commercial and retail establishments. This Order will be enforced by the Groton Police Department. The Board of Health urges everyone to comply with this directive for the safety and health of the public.
- The Select Board has voted unanimously to extend Groton’s essential services emergency order to May 18th in compliance with the Order issued by the Governor. Town Hall, the Groton Country Club, the Center in West Groton and the Groton Public Library will be closed to the public until at least May 18, 2020. This order will be reviewed in the next two weeks to determine if it will be extended. The Town Manager presented to the Select Board at their regularly scheduled meeting on May 4, 2020 proposed Protocols for the re-opening of public buildings, as well as, a proposal to open the Farmers Market this summer at Williams Barn. The Select Board plans on adopting these protocols at their next regularly scheduled meeting to be held on May 11, 2020. The Protocols will be posted on the Town’s website (grotonma.gov) prior to the meeting.
- The Town Moderator met with both the Board of Health and Select Board to discuss whether or not Town Meeting will be held on May 18th. At this time, it is likely that the Town Meeting will be postponed and rescheduled for a later date. Please pay attention to future press releases and the Town’s website (grotonma.gov) for updates. The Annual Town Election will be held on June 9, 2020. The Select Board and Town Clerk are strongly encouraging all voters to vote in this election by absentee ballot in the interest of safety. An absentee ballot application can be found here:
https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/elepdf/absentee/English-Absentee-Ballot-Application.pdf
A completed application may be mailed to Town Clerk, 173 Main Street, Groton, MA 01450, faxed to 978-448-2030 or emailed to townclerk@townofgroton.org. In addition, in an abundance of caution to protect the Town’s Election Workers and residents participating in the Election, the Select Board has set the polling hours on June 9th from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
The Town of Groton and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts are taking unprecedented steps in order to reduce the rate of spread by working proactively to reduce transmission and promote public health recommendations. We urge all citizens to exercise appropriate measures in order to reduce the risk of infection. Additional information regarding risk and containment can be found on the CDC website https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/. Thank you for your immediate attention and cooperation with this. We will continue to update the community as information becomes available. Please keep checking the Town of Groton website and social media outlets for updates as they become available.
Sincerely,
Mark W. Haddad
Town Manager
