A Message from Mayor Stimpson - April 7
Apr 7th, 2020
Good evening,
It is 9 p.m. on Tuesday, April 7, and I am writing to give you an update on the City of Mobile’s efforts regarding COVID-19.
As of tonight, there are 202 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Mobile County, and 8 deaths attributed to the virus.
This week is crucial in the fight to stop the spread of Coronavirus. We are doing all within our power to protect you, in addition to our first responders and health care workers.
Today, the City Council approved an ordinance giving us increased power to enforce the curfew we implemented as part of our “Stay Home” order. Specifically, first-time violators will be subject to a $100 citation, with the fine rising to $200 for a second offense.
There are very few reasons for anyone to be out between the hours of 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., with exceptions for those going to and from essential jobs listed in the order.
Now is the time that we all must practice the guidelines we’ve been given by health experts at the national, state and local level. Those include using good hygiene and washing your hands, avoiding any gatherings of 10 or more people and staying home as much as possible.
Staying home is the most effective thing any of us can do to stop the spread of this deadly disease. Staying home keeps you safe, and it protects our first responders, health care workers, food service workers and others from being infected.
The more we stay home, the more lives we will save and the quicker we will emerge from this crisis. As we’ve said consistently, our top priority is keeping you safe. We will continue to do all in our power to protect our citizens as we look forward to the day when we can return to normal life.
It is important to remember that COVID-19 is more than just public health emergency. It is also a very serious economic crisis as well. It is having a devastating impact on small businesses and already we have seen hundreds of Mobilians lose their jobs, their paychecks and their benefits.
Municipal government is not immune to this downturn. We rely heavily on sales taxes to pay for city services. I am grateful for the work by our department heads to reduce spending and strengthen the city’s finances. Their discipline enabled us to build a reserve that is helping us to weather this storm.
Today we are focused on sustaining essential city services through this pandemic. It is a challenge because there is no way to project how long the economy will be disrupted. Currently, the City is projecting a loss of $12 million a month because of COVID-19, which is more than half of our monthly revenue.
Thanks to our employees, we built a surplus of about $60 million to carry us through a crisis such as this one. There were many times we faced pressure to tap into that reserve, but by holding firm it means we have enough to cover five months of operations at current levels.
I share this information with you simply to reinforce the point that this is why we have worked so hard the past six years to get the city’s fiscal house in order. We have a solid foundation to stand on in these tough times.
There are no easy decisions in a crisis, and many more difficult decisions remain ahead of us. We will continue to take every appropriate step to keep you safe. We have a talented and dedicated team in city government, and we are 100 percent committed to winning this fight.
Tonight, my thoughts are with our citizens who have lost their jobs. All of us worry about COVID-19, but they face the additional stress of worrying about paying their bills, supporting their families and making it through the next day.
Coronavirus is a public health challenge unlike anything we have seen in our lifetimes. We are devoting all of our focus on defeating this invisible enemy - but we must do more. It’s not enough just to stop the pandemic. We must save lives, and livelihoods, too.