EAST BRUNSWICK–With 469 residents confirmed positive for coronavirus (COVID-19), Mayor Brad Cohen updated residents on the status of the township’s response.
“As of [April 27], East Brunswick has a total of 469 positive cases that had been identified through testing and we are at 14 deaths,” Cohen said during the April 27 council meeting. “So 469 is the number of cases that are evenly distributed throughout the township and not at any one location.”
Cohen said the township is using various resources, such as EBTV, Reverse 911, social media and virtual council meetings, to keep residents updated.
Before Gov. Phil Murphy’s announcement to reopen the state’s parks on May 2, Cohen said the township decided to keep its parks open for residents despite state-issued lockdown restrictions.
“We want to encourage people to use our parks to go out, walk, take some time to yourself, but they are open as long as people follow all of the social distancing rules, we have no intention of closing them,” Cohen said.
On April 27, Cohen said Murphy announced six principles for how and when the state will fully reopen.
“Many of you remember the CARES Act that was passed a couple of weeks ago by Congress, but, unfortunately, [the] act was meant only to cover gaps in expenses related to COVID-19,” Cohen said. “So really, none of that money comes to the township or local government and we have significant expenses and clearly loss in revenues as a result of being closed for the last month.”
Cohen said for as long as the township can anticipate, those revenues don’t seem to be something it can expect anytime soon.
With taxes due on May 1, Cohen said the township offers a 10-day grace period for all residents.
Cohen said residents can make a payment using five ways that include: an electronic transfer from their bank; an e-check, which incurs a charge of $1.05; an online credit card payment; mail a check; or put the check in the drop slot, to the left of the front doors of the Municipal Building, located at 1 Civic Center Dr.
“Finally, I just want to remind everybody that our township website is constantly being updated with COVID-19 information related to the disease itself, to the science, a lot of links to scientific communities, the Centers for Disease Control, the World Health Organization, [and] New Jersey Department of Health,” Cohen said. “We have a lot of information with links for people that are looking for help with businesses and employment, restaurants that are open, takeout, EBTV updates, and it’s constantly being updated as the information gets updated to us.”
For more information, visit www.eastbrunswick.org/550/Coronavirus-COVID-19.
Contact Vashti Harris at vharris@newspapermediagroup.com.
