Stafford County to reopen Friday, May 15: ‘Stay-at-home’ to ‘safer-at-home’

Stafford County is ready to get back to work.

The county’s government today is telling residents and business owners it will follow Gov. Ralph Northam’s guidance when it comes to reopening the county’s economy, sending back-to-work the owners and employees of places like restaurants, barbershops, spas, bowling alleys, and other amusement businesses. Churches will also be allowed to reopen under the phase of the governor’s plan.

From the governor’s office:

Retail establishments will be allowed to operate at 50 percent occupancy, restaurant and beverage establishments may offer outdoor dining at 50 percent occupancy, personal grooming services may begin operating with one patron per service provider, and fitness centers may offer outdoor exercise services. Campgrounds may also begin taking reservations for short-term stays.

Places of worship have had a 10-person limit and have been allowed to hold drive-in services allowed. In Phase One, drive-in services may continue, and services may be held inside at 50 percent capacity. Specific guidelines for religious services can be found here.

With the reopening, Stafford County will also ease the restorations on access to public buildings and facilities. Cities and counties to the north of Stafford will have to wait two more weeks to reopen. 

The county government tells us:

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam recently updated reopening plans for the Commonwealth moving away from stay-at-home to “safer-at-home,” initiating Phase I of his three-pronged plan for opening the state on Friday, May 15. Accordingly, Stafford County is revising its building closures to the public, reopening most County offices and facilities on May 15, 2020, for in-person services with specific and safety-focused protocols in place adhering to the 10-person guidance for gatherings. Be advised that Stafford County will align with any changes made by the Governor if a decision is made to extend past the planned May 15 opening.

“As we reopen to the public, it will be in a way that puts the safety of the public and staff as the number one priority. We appreciate everyone’s patience as we all adapt to this modified operation,” said County Administrator Tom Foley. “This decision is based on Stafford’s COVID-19 data trends and is guiding the way we plan to open to the public.”

Stafford is currently showing a positive case rate per 100,000 of 257, as of May 12. According to www.novaregiondashboard.com, Prince William is showing a rate of 690 cases, Alexandria is showing 778 cases and the Northern Virginia region, as a whole, is at 557 cases.  However, Fredericksburg is showing 225 cases and Spotsylvania is at 192 cases, demonstrating that Stafford aligns more with the Rappahannock Health District (Stafford’s health district) and the state overall, more than Northern Virginia. This factor is important to note as the Governor has requested that only regions may request different accommodations, which is something the Fredericksburg region is not seeking at this time. As an example, Stafford is cautiously opening the Government Center building by taking phased steps to bring back staff and visitors into the building safely. Specifically, this means that less than 50% of staff will return to work in shifts while allowing no more than 10-person gatherings that will not exceed more than 25 public visitors total into the Government Center at any given period.

The public is encouraged to continue to use the many online and phone services to conduct business remotely.  If those services do not meet your needs, you may visit County offices and facilities to conduct business, starting at 8:00 a.m., on Friday, May 15, 2020. Temperature checks will be taken at the entrance to each building.  Face coverings are recommended for visitors but will not be provided by the County. A limited number of patrons will be allowed in each specified area at a time to meet social distancing guidelines. Stafford encourages citizens to take advantage of online services as much as possible during this time of transition.

Staff members will wear face coverings in common areas and when they are conducting business with someone from the public, unless separated by a divider. Staff will be continuously cleaning and disinfecting their offices before and after external or internal visitors. Enhanced sanitizing precautions will be taken in the after-hours cleaning of the buildings.

During Phase I, most Stafford County outdoor parks will remain open with regular operating hours for trail use only. For a listing of those parks and the amenities closed within the facility, please visit www.staffordparks.com. Unfortunately, due to budget constraints caused by COVID-19 and limitations on public gatherings, a difficult decision has been made to cancel park activities and programs for the summer, including camps and pools. Staff and the Board of Supervisors will continue to evaluate the safety, staffing, and budgeting aspects throughout the summer, given that the State may move to the next phase creating the potential for a limited increase of park operations.

As the Governor encourages residents that they are ‘safer at home,’ all business transactions are still available online or by phone, as listed below.

Online Services

Residents may access services online in several ways on Stafford’s website (www.staffordcountyva.gov/onlineservices):

• Via the citizen portal (www.staffordcountyva.gov/mystafford) where one may pay Utilities, real estate and property taxes and purchase dog tags
• Through Public Works (www.staffordcountyva.gov/permitsandplans) for permits activities, billing and account activities and plan submittal activities
• GIS maps (www.staffordcountyva.gov/gis) will be available
• Job listings are online at www.staffordcountyva.gov/jobs
• Court information may be accessed at https://staffordcountyva.gov/courts
• Social Services local resources at www.staffordcountyva.gov/socialservices

Water Services

Stafford Utilities is temporarily suspending all water and sewer cutoffs for any non-payment or late payment reasons until further notice. Customers, who are currently without water and (or) sewer service for any prior reason, may call (540) 658-8616 to be reconnected. All nonessential utility flushing or tie-ins that would affect water service have been delayed until further notice. Stafford Utilities will work with all customers on any billing questions.

Phone Services

Stafford County continues to stand by, ready to answer phone calls at (540) 658-8600. If you need specific support, please contact the department directly.

Commissioner of the Revenue: 540-658-4132

Circuit Court:  540-658-8750

General District Court: 540-658-8935

Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court: 540-658-8778

Economic Development: 540-658-8681

Fire and Rescue: 540-658-7200

Human Resources: 540-658-8628

Human Services: 540-658-4622

Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities: 540-658-4814

Planning and Zoning: 540-658-8668

Public Works: 540-658-8616

Rappahannock Regional Landfill (R-Board): 540-658-5279

Sheriff’s Office: 540-658-4400

Social Services: 540-658-8720

Treasurer: 540-658-8700

Voter Registrar 540-658-4000

Courts

Courthouse access is limited and from May 18 to June 7, Circuit and General District Court will be having in person non-emergency matters, if it is deemed safe to do so. The Juvenile Domestic Relations Court has its own schedule.  More information may be found at https://staffordcountyva.gov/courts.

Stafford County continues to reassess the evolving situation daily and will provide updates to the community to include notifying the public if there are any changes to these procedures For more information on COVID-19, please visit Stafford’s Coronavirus Central Information page (www.staffordcountyva.gov/coronavirus) with links to local, State and federal authorities.