Ready to reopen

Local government offices are open to the public again.

Jay County Commissioners signed a resolution Wednesday during a special meeting to reopen Jay County Courthouse and all county offices and departments without need of an appointment.

Regular business operations at the building will began today.

Former commissioners Mike Leonhard and Chuck Huffman and commissioner Chad Aker signed a resolution at an emergency meeting Nov. 30 enacting restrictions in response to coronavirus concerns. At that time, Jay had been in the severe risk category (2.5 on a three-point scale) for several weeks on the Indiana State Department of Health’s COVID-19 ratings.

Huffman had proposed a resolution at a previous meeting to protect county employees and prevent further spread of the virus. He said concerns about cases and hospitals filling as well as courthouse employees’ safety warranted action.

Previously, the courthouse was only open to appointments, and county government business was limited to essential work only. Employees or members of the public entering were required to wear facial covers and social distance.

It’s been more than three months since that decision, and since then, the numbers have changed.

Jay has been ranked “blue” (minimal risk for the spread of coronavirus) since Feb. 17 (see related story). 

Commissioners Rex Journay, Brian McGalliard and Aker agreed Monday to meet for a few minutes before their joint-executive session with Jay County Council to sign the resolution into effect.

The new resolution is modeled after a similar measure passed June 22, which went into effect July 6. All offices and departments are open to the public, county employees are required to wear facial coverings and social distance and also wash their hands and sanitize frequently.

However, in recognition of Gov. Eric Holcomb’s mask mandate, commissioners adopted a resolution July 28 requiring facial coverings. This resolution also requires anyone 8 or older to wear facial coverings in the courthouse.

Each office and department is in charge of cleaning its respective offices and work areas. Courthouse superintendent Bruce Sutton is in charge of keeping the courthouse main areas clean. He’s also tasked with providing disinfectant to all offices and departments as needed.

Commissioners passed the resolution unanimously.

“Anything we can do to get closer to back to normalcy, I’m happy with,” Aker commented after the meeting. “I think people know the risks, so, people can make that decision (to visit the courthouse) for themselves.”