A Message from Mayor Stimpson May 19, 2020
May 19th, 2020
Good evening,
It is 9 p.m. Tuesday, May 19, and I am writing to give you an update on the City of Mobile's efforts regarding COVID-19.
As of tonight, there are 1,751 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Mobile County, out of 15,864 total tests. There are 103 deaths attributed to the virus.
Our testing capacity continues to increase. Each day, I receive a report from Synergy Labs that indicates an average of about 30 people a day test positive for COVID-19. That's important because it shows the virus is still active and continuing to infect people in Mobile County. But it is also encouraging because it shows that the overall positive rate is declining as we test more and more people each day.
Today we took a big step on the path toward economic recovery. We proposed an executive order that will enable restaurants to serve customers outside of their dining areas, at tables and chairs set up on sidewalks and city rights-of-way.
This step was needed to help provide the extra spacing they need to keep customers at a safe distance while dining. The order was approved unanimously by the City Council at today's meeting, and we are grateful for their endorsement. It applies city-wide and it was based on feedback from our restaurant community.
In a bit of very positive news, Airbus announced today that it reached two important milestones at its commercial aircraft production facility in Mobile. They officially inaugurated production activities in a newly-built Final Assembly Line hangar, and they started production of the first U.S.-built A220 for JetBlue.
The new 270,000 sq. foot hangar, where A220 aircraft will be assembled, is officially open for business after an 18-month construction project. It houses five primary assembly stations where major airframe component assemblies come together for a completed aircraft.
Airbus actually began producing A220 aircraft in Mobile in August 2019 using space in an existing A320 Final Assembly Line hangar, and newly built support hangars. With the completion of the new hangar, the Airbus production site in Alabama has now officially doubled in size.
This is great news, particularly at such a challenging time.
Tomorrow we will participate in a meeting with our partners in the Unified Command, including the Mobile County Commission and the Mobile County Health Department, to take a closer look at the data we are collecting.
The goal is to improve the flow of information so that we can make better, more informed decisions. At the same time, we want to establish a clear and reliable source of facts that can be shared with you. I'm optimistic that, working together, we can eliminate some of the confusion that currently exists around the limited data we receive.
Thank you, as always, for your positive responses which are appreciated. Our team is working harder than ever during this challenging time. Each day we learn more about COVID-19 and each day we strengthen our hand against this threat to community.
And, each day we are grateful for the opportunity to work for you.
Sincerely,
Mayor Sandy Stimpson