Matthews Messenger | May 2020

MAY — 2020

Volume 2 — Issue 5

PARADE OF LIGHTS AT NOVANT MATTHEWS - PG5

In this issue...

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Residents can use Community Connect to provide critical information about their households to first responders

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Matthews Board listens to public participation comments during these challenging times Encouraging messages from the community about COVID-19

Keep These Messages On Your Mind Engage and Connect: Road resurfacing continues this month throughout several streets in Matthews. Visit www.matthewsnc. gov for the latest construction schedule.

MATTHEWSNC.GOV

@TOWNOFMATTHEWS

@MATTHEWSNC

TOWN OF MATTHEWS

@TOWNOFMATTHEWS

Matthews Messenger | may 2020

MANAGER’S MESSAGE As Town Manager, your safety is my primary concern. I want to thank you all for your support to prevent the potential spread of COVID-19 in our community. It has been heartwarming to see our community come together during this time of crisis to support each other. If you are looking for ways to help those in need during this time, please consider making a contribution to the Matthews HELP Center. Visit https:// www.gofundme.com/f/matthewshelping-matthews to learn more about this campaign.

The difficult decisions to cancel important meetings and events, and to restrict other normal daily activities were not made lightly. These preliminary efforts to contain the pandemic have allowed us as a town to be more prepared and responsive to public safety needs and core services.

The situation is ever evolving. We have been working closely with Mecklenburg County and the State of North Carolina, and will continue our trust and reliance in Mecklenburg County Public Health to provide guidance for us on how to best protect you, the citizens of Matthews.

We highly encourage residents to comply with the stay at home order issued by Mecklenburg County, as well as the order from the State of North Carolina. With these measures, we hope that operations will return to normal as soon as possible.

We know this has also been a difficult and trying time for businesses in our community. On our Town of Matthews Facebook page and on our website (www. matthewsnc.gov), we have been sharing resources for businesses, and promoting ways for our residents and visitors to support small businesses during this time. Be sure to follow that page to stay upto-date on the latest news, and to find ways to stay connected as a community.

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HAZEN BLODGETT MATTHEWS TOWN MANAGER

Please do not hesitate to reach out to the Town if you need assistance.

We will get through this together.

MATTHEWS

The number of Food Truck Friday events scheduled for this year

Hazen Blodgett

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HBLODGETT@MATTHEWSNC.GOV

BECKY HAWKE ASSISTANT TOWN MANAGER BHAWKE@MATTHEWSNC.GOV

Fast Facts

Minutes allocated per individual public comment for Board of Commissioners meetings

Months until Matthews’ Beach Fest in October

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The number of minutes it takes to set up a Community Connect account

Matthews Messenger | may 2020

Spring & Summer Events Updates The safety of our community is our top

We look forward to hosting Beachfest on its

priority and the Town of Matthews is actively

special reschedule dates - October 16th - 17th

working on precautionary measures in response to the emerging

in Downtown Matthews at Stumptown

d truck o fr fo

and rapidly changing (COVID-19). As a result, the Town of Matthews will be cancelling or postponing all Parks &

music, food vendors, shag

s ay id

situation with Coronavirus

Park. There will be live beach dancing, and more.

Children are encouraged to enjoy the kids’ inflatable village and arts & crafts boardwalk.

Town of Matthews

Recreation programs

Beachfest will return to

through May 31st.

its normal schedule in

cancelled

Food Truck Fridays will tentatively resume on

to w

Friday, June 12. The Food Truck Friday season has been extended into Fall 2020 to make up

n o f m atthe

ws

May 2021.

Please follow the Town of Matthews Parks & Rec page for

updates on upcoming events.

for all cancellations in April and May.

COMMUNITY CONNECT T he Town of Ma t t hew s is p ro u d t o p a rt ner w it h t he Fire a nd EMS Depar tments in Me c k le nb u r g Co u nt y, Cha rlo t t e Fire Dep a rt ment , a nd Char l otteM e c k le nb ur g Emer genc y Ma na gement t o p ro v ide Co mmu ni ty Connect - a s a f e a nd ef fic ient o nline p la t fo r m fo r resident s t o c ommuni cate e s s e nt ia l info r ma t io n b efo re a n emer genc y ha p p ens.

C om m unit y Co nnec t is a free, sec u re, a nd ea sy w a y fo r res i d ents to p rov id e c r itic a l info r ma t io n a b o u t t heir ho u seho lds t o first res pond er s .

O n t he we bsit e, yo u c a n a dd det a ils a b o u t yo u r fa mily, p ets , med i cal ne e d s , a nd residenc e t yp e. The info r ma t io n help s u s imp ro v e our abi l i ty t o re s p ond a nd ma k e dec isio ns du ring a n emer genc y.

B y p rov id ing info r ma t io n a b o u t yo u o r yo u r residenc e t ha t y ou feel i s im p or t a nt f or emer genc y resp o nse p erso nnel t o k no w in t he event of an e m e r g e nc y, w e c a n help t o ensu re t ha t yo u a nd ev eryo ne yo u care about c a n b e b e t ter p ro t ec t ed. We inv it e yo u t o v isit o u r Co mmu ni ty Connect p a g e , c re a te yo u r o w n p ro file, a nd st a rt sha ring c rit ic a l info r mati on wi th you r f ir s t re sp o nders.

D a t a t ha t y o u p ro v ide Co mmu nit y Co nnec t is 1 0 0 % sec u re and i s us ed only f or t he p u rp o se o f b et t er serv ing yo u du ring emer gency s i tuati ons .

You r inf or m at io n is nev er u sed fo r a ny o t her p u rp o se.

C lic k he re t o v isit t he To w n o f Ma t t hew s Co mmu nit y Co nnec t page.

For m ore info r ma t io n a b o u t Co mmu nit y Co nnec t , c o nt a c t Matthews Fi re & EM S a t 7 0 4 -8 4 7 -9 4 0 0 .

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Matthews Messenger | may 2020

IN VIRTUAL MEETINGS Due to Mecklenburg County’s COVID-19 Stay at Home Order, the Matthews Board of Commissioners meetings will be conducted remotely using the Zoom virtual meeting platform. The Town of Matthews is committed to transparency and robust public participation during these challenging times. While the public is not permitted to gather in-person to participate in this meeting, there are options to participate in our meetings remotely:

WATCH LIVE The meeting is available via Zoom.

A link to the Zoom meeting will be shared on MatthewsNC.Gov before the meeting. A livestream of the meeting will also be available via the Town of Matthews YouTube Channel.

LISTEN LIVE: A unique phone number to dial in and listen to the meeting will be available on the MatthewsNC.Gov before the meeting.

LISTEN LIVE A unique phone number to dial in and listen to the meeting will be available on the MatthewsNC.Gov before the meeting.

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RECORD A PUBLIC COMMENT TO BE READ AT THE MEETING Public comments may be emailed to matthews@matthewsnc.gov or phoned in to 704-708-1222. Please include your name in the comment and note our limit of up to up to four minutes in length, or approximately 500 words, for the public comment.

The Board will allocate 20 minutes to read the submitted comments.

Public comments will be accepted through 5 PM on the day of the Board of Commissioners meeting.

Matthews Messenger | may 2020

MESSAGES FROM THE COMMUNITY Town leaders have been sharing video messages with the community over the last few months regarding the Town’s response to the Covid-19 crisis. Here is a small snapshot of them. Please visit the Town’s YouTube page to watch the videos.

Matthews Board of Commissioners Mayor Higdon “Now more than ever, it’s critically important that you stay home...I hope you get the chance to go outside, maybe go for a walk and enjoy some fresh air and sunshine.

Please keep your distance from others.” - Mayor Higdon.

Matthews Fire & EMS “COVID Virus is unprecedented in our lifetime. If we do our part, we can get through this together. We are asking you to partner with us to ensure a safe and healthy community.” - Fire Chief Rob Kinniburgh

“We’ve seen some wonderful examples of the town coming together. The Matthews community always comes together in a time of crisis.” -Commissioner John Urban

PARADE OF LIGHTS AT NOVANT MATTHEWS On April 11th, at 11 AM, vehicles from the Town of Matthews, Idlewild Volunteer Fire Department, Mint Hill Fire Department, Matthews Police Department, and other agencies drove around the campus of Novant Health Matthews Medical Center with their sirens blaring and lights flashing. This heartfelt parade of lights was a way for us to share our unwavering support for the nurses, doctors, janitorial staff, and everyone else who is fighting to keep our community safe.

Matthews Fire and EMS let everyone know ahead of time that there was no emergency and no need to be alarmed during the parade.

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Matthews Messenger | may 2020

fun at home

On the Town of Matthews Facebook page, we asked residents to share with us how they are keeping busy and enjoying time with their families at home. Many residents said they enjoy working on their yard, taking walks around the neighborhood, and leisurely reading books. Be sure to use #MatthewsFUNAtHome to share what you and your family are doing to have fun during this extended time at home. Check out the images below from various Matthews residents!

The Lamparellis enjoy painting with the whole family.

Thordis and his family enjoy playing numerous games of ping pong.

David is dedicating time to his garden by trimming, fertilizing, and growing flowers.

Sheryl and her family made an encouraging message of HOPE to display in their yard.

TOWN HALL

232 Matthews Station St. | Matthews, NC 28105 PHONE

(704) 847- 4411 E-MAIL

matthews@matthewsnc.gov WEB

www.matthewsnc.gov

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