Perth County Warden Jim Aitcheson says the county is closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation and is acting appropriately.
Aitcheson says they closed most of their buildings and areas the county controls, even prior to the provincial and federal announcements earlier this week.
"We've closed our archives, the museum's closed. We don't operate a lot of buildings for the public as a county. Our long-term care is actually, even though it's the county, the Town of St. Marys and the City of Stratford, it's actually operated by a separate group of employees," said Aitcheson.
In regards to board and council meetings, they have all been postponed and Aitcheson says staff can work remotely if they prefer.
"We've got teleconferencing available now, for emergency management meetings and things like that so people aren't all walking through the building. But the staff are still working, but they do have the option to work from home," added the Warden.
In terms of the economy, Aitcheson says Perth County businesses will be impacted by the situation and if there is relief made available, the county will pursue it.
"We'll do our best to work with the provincial and federal governments, and get all the information we need, and if there's something we can do to get some programs out there or assistance, we're going to make them available in the future, that's for sure," said Aitcheson. "Perth is more an agriculture region. As far as the farming side of it, at this point, I'm not going to say it's business as usual, but it's definitely going to continue on."
Despite local businesses taking a hit, Aitcheson notes that Perth County is a predominantly agri-based region, and despite the coronavirus concerns, that work will continue.
