Alexandria might be moving into phase three of reopening its economy on July 1, but it’s taking a slow approach to opening its facilities back up to staff and the public. City staff are planning on slowly getting back to their respective offices, and departments are looking at rotational staff schedules with the goal of starting the process in mid-July.

“We want to continue to minimize physical interaction (with the public) while gradually increasing those service offerings,” Terry Suehr, the city’s director of the Department of Project Implementation, told City Council earlier this week. “We will remain in partial opening all the way through to when this virus is more in a completely controlled it’s not a big threat to us.”

She added, “Most of our council boards and commissions [will] remain virtual, but we’ll start to restore more in-person, programs, while maintaining… physical distancing.”

There are no firm dates in place for the slow reopening of in-person services, and Suehr said that portions of staff teleworking from home will likely go on well into the future.

“The first thing to think about is that really the city never closed,” Suehr said. “We understand the need to respond to the public’s requests for additional in person services and availability of facilities. One of our approaches though will be to continue a significant amount of telework, and our online services will definitely continue.”

In the meantime, the city is asking businesses to participate in the ALX Promise program, which trains business owners and their staff on meeting health regulations.

Staff photo by James Cullum