City Hall closed to the public due to COVID-19

LACONIA — City Hall is now closed to the public, the latest in a growing list of extraordinary precautions in an effort to curb the spread of coronavirus.

City Hall, which houses numerous departments, including the offices of the city clerk, tax collector, and city manager, was closed to the public effective with the close of business at 4:30 p.m. Monday, according to a statement from City Manager Scott Myers.

“After considerable discussion with the senior management team and in consultation with Mayor (Andrew) Hosmer, I have made the decision to limit public access to city buildings after the close of business today (Monday)”, Myers said in a statement he issued to the mayor and city councilors, which he provided to The Daily Sun.

The decision has also resulted in closing the Public Works Department office on Bisson Avenue to the public.

Other communities in the Greater Laconia area have also taken steps to limit public access to municipal buildings.

Belmont’s Town Hall has been closed to the public since last Wednesday.

In Gilford the Town Clerk/Tax Collector’s Office has been closed to walk-in traffic since last Thursday.

In Laconia, city employees will continue to work their usual hours. The public is being asked to deal with city departments through phone calls or emails. People are being encouraged to use online services to handle routine matters such as paying property taxes, water or sewer bills, renewing motor vehicle registrations, or renewing dog licenses.

“Our intent is to be as customer friendly as possible while deferring items that are not time sensitive,” Myers’ statement said.

Myers said if someone has an urgent matter, they should contact the relevant department and if that person needs to bring something to City Hall, an employee would arrange to meet that person at the front door so the person would not have to come inside the building.

City Planning Director Dean Trefethen said applicants will be asked to email the diagrams of their project to his office and then he or a member of his staff will call the applicant by phone to discuss plans in more detail.

The restrictions may change if necessary to comply with future state or federal declarations.

As with Laconia, Belmont municipal employees are continuing to work their usual hours — from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the public is being urged to use online services wherever possible to transact business. People can make an appointment to meet with someone in a specific town office “as a last resort,” according to notice posted on the town’s website.

In Gilford, the Town Clerk/Tax Collector’s Office and the Public Works Office are the only ones closed to walk-in traffic, according to Town Administrator Scott Dunn.

Those with an urgent matter for the Public Works Department can call to make an appointment, at which time they will be screened as to recent travel and possible exposure to people with CONVID-19 symptoms.

“I don’t have any plans to close (Town Hall),” Dunn said. But he pointed out that decision rests ultimately with selectmen, who are scheduled to meet Wednesday.

Dunn explained the decision to limit access to the Town Clerk/Tax Collector’s Office came after a man went to the office last Wednesday and, after he finished his business, he told the clerk about his recent travels out of the country and then started having a coughing fit which caused the office staff to become highly agitated.

In addition to limited public access to that office, a plexiglass shield was installed the length of the counter, creating a barrier between the clerks and the public.

“All it takes is one bad apple,” Dunn said.

In Belmont, the decision to ban walk-in traffic also applies to the lobbies at the police and fire departments and to the Department of Public Works, according to Jeanne Beaudin, the town administrator.

“It was done in an abundance of caution,” Beaudin said.

She said municipal offices are functioning well despite the new limitations.

“We are working to the best of our ability to make sure everything gets accomplished,” she said.

Myers said the decision to take stronger measures to protect the health of city workers had been driven by the ever-increasing number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the state.

The number of cases as of Monday stood at 101 and the state reported its first death linked to the disease.

In Meredith, the Community Center and the library are closed. The fire station is closed to the public, as is the store at the town’s transfer station, according to Town Manager Phillip Warren. He said Town Hall and the annex remain open, but the public is being encouraged to use online services whenever possible to transact town business.

Warren said town officials would be reassessing the situation sometime this week, but he was unsure exactly when.