UPDATE: County limits access to courthouse, annex
Published 7:17 pm Thursday, March 19, 2020
- The Colquitt County Arts Center Show Choir performed patriotic songs during the annual Independence Day Observance held Friday on the Courthouse Square. Hosted by the John Benning Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, the event featuring ‘the next generation of patriots’ attracted about 85 people.
MOULTRIE, Ga. — Local governments reacted to the coronavirus crisis earlier this week by canceling meetings and limiting access to two important county buildings.
Moultrie Mayor Bill McIntosh announced Tuesday night that all special events on city-owned property had been canceled for the next eight weeks. That includes three Moultrie City Council meetings, which were scheduled for April 7, April 21 and May 5.
The mayor said special meetings may be called during that time to handle specific business. Officials said those meetings might be held through technology rather than in person, but they hadn’t worked out any of the details yet.
On Wednesday, the Colquitt County School Board announced that it would cancel its meeting scheduled for Monday, March 23.
On Wednesday evening, Colquitt County released a public service announcement stating that both the Colquitt County Courthouse and Annex Building have revised their public hours. Beginning Thursday and ending March 31, both buildings will be enforcing restricted access from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
“Restricted access means that the public will not be allowed into the building until 1 p.m.,” said County Clerk Melissa Lawson. “This is for janitorial and custodial services to take place. We want the building to be clean to lessen the chance of the virus and germs making someone sick.”
The public is encouraged to conduct business by calling (229) 616-7400 or on the county website, www.ccboc.com.
“We’re encouraging citizens if they can to hold off on face-to-face encounters,” Lawson said. “We understand that there are some matters that you have to come up here for, and if that’s the case, then you can, but for all other matters, please try to use our online features — like if you have to pay your property taxes, you can do that online. All other matters that need to be resolved face to face can be done so at 1 p.m. when the building officially opens.”
The partial closure was a collaborative effort put together by the county administrator Chas Cannon and the board of commissioners for the safety of the public, the press release said.
