Coronavirus updates: 3 counties approved for next phase of reopening; Washington DFI investigating scams
This page includes coronavirus developments around Washington state for Monday, May 11.
Updated at 5:15 p.m.
The Washington State Department of Health on Monday reported 231 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 14 additional deaths.
Statewide totals are now at 17,122 cases and 945 deaths, up from 16,891 cases and 931 deaths on Sunday.
King County continues to be the hardest hit with 7,068 cases and 506 deaths. Snohomish County has 2,690 cases and 118 deaths while Pierce County reported 1,712 cases and 62 deaths.
Garfield County remains the only county in the state without a case. There are 38 cases that haven’t been assigned a county.
Washington state has now conducted 252,108 tests with 6.8% coming back positive. Of the total confirmed cases, 5.5% have resulted in death.
Pierce County reports 26 new cases
Updated at 2:30 p.m.
Pierce County reported 26 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, and two more deaths.
The county’s total COVID-19 cases are at 1,712 with 62 deaths. A previous case was misreported and removed from the daily totals.
Daily case totals can change as the county receives new information about cases, finds duplicate data or is assigned cases that were originally attributed to other counties.
The two new deaths reported Monday involved two Tacoma women, both in their 90s, with underlying health conditions.
According to the state Department of Health’s COVID-19 data dashboard, there have been 18,284 tests run on Pierce County residents with 8.5 percent of them positive.
The county now reports the number of health care workers diagnosed with COVID-19. On May 9, it reported there were 289 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Pierce County among healthcare workers. The next case count update for this group will be Wednesday.
The county’s COVID-19 tracking page lists the number of assumed recovered cases as 920 out of estimated active confirmed cases, 792, for Pierce County.
Monday’s geographical totals are listed below with Sunday’s numbers in parentheses:
▪ Bonney Lake: 40 (38)
▪ Central Pierce County: 127 (126)
▪ East Pierce County: 48 (no change)
▪ Edgewood/Fife/Milton: 83 (no change)
▪ Frederickson: 58 (57)
▪ Gig Harbor area: 51 (no change)
▪ Graham: 52 (51)
▪ JBLM: No longer reported
▪ Key Peninsula: 7 (no change)
▪ Lake Tapps/Sumner area: 41 (no change)
▪ Lakewood: 179 (176)
▪ Parkland: 91 (89)
▪ Puyallup: 120 (115)
▪ South Hill: 91 (89)
▪ South Pierce County: 37 (36)
▪ Southwest Pierce County: 21 (no change)
▪ Spanaway: 56 (no change)
▪ Tacoma: 553 (546)
▪ University Place: 50 (no change)
▪ Unknown: 7 (8)
Daily reports include cases received by 11:59 p.m. the previous day.
Three more counties approved to move to Phase 2 of reopening
Updated at 1:30 p.m.
Washington State Secretary of Health John Wiesman on Monday approved applications from Wahkiakum, Skamania, and Stevens counties to move into Phase 2 of Gov. Jay Inslee’s Safe Start plan.
This brings the total to 8 counties. Last week, Secretary Wiesman approved variances for Columbia, Garfield, Lincoln, Ferry and Pend Oreille counties.
Businesses in the counties approved to move into Phase 2 must wait to reopen until guidance has been released for their industry on how to keep workers and the public safe. They must comply with all health and safety requirements outlined in that guidance to reopen.
To apply for a variance, counties must have a population of less than 75,000 and no new cases of COVID-19 in the last three weeks. The application process requires support from the local health officer, the local board of health, local hospitals, and the county commission/council.
Each county must demonstrate they have adequate local hospital bed capacity as well as adequate PPE supplies to keep health care workers safe.
The state is still considering additional options to support different regional needs in reopening. Learn more about county variances and the statewide response to COVID-19 at coronavirus.wa.gov.
Tacoma’s official Fourth of July celebration postponed
Updated at 1:30 p.m.
Th City of Tacoma and Metro Parks Tacoma, along with Festivals Inc., jointly announced the postponement of the Fourth of July T-Town Family 4th celebration due to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A community-wide event may be planned for later in the summer when physical distancing mandates are lifted and it is deemed safe to host large gatherings.
“As much as we were looking forward to this fun family event, we must remain vigilant and focused on the safety and well-being of our community and take measures to reduce the spread of this pandemic,” said Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards. “I look forward to a time we can come together as a community again and celebrate.”
Last year, the City of Tacoma partnered with Metro Parks to manage the City’s annual Fourth of July celebration and Festivals Inc. was selected to produce the re-imagined event.
Large events have been banned in Pierce County since March 11. Fourth of July events throughout Western Washington are anticipated to be postponed or canceled as a result of the pandemic.
“Postponing the event is the right thing to do in the interest of public health,” said Tim Reid, president of the Board of Park Commissioners. “We will continue to monitor the situation and hope for an opportunity to host a community-wide event in a few months. We appreciate the public’s patience and understanding.”
Washington DFI, national task force investigating COVID-19 investment scams
Updated at 8:40 a.m.
The Washington State Department of Financial Institutions announced that it is participating in an international enforcement task force organized by the North American Securities Administrators Association to investigate fraudsters looking to capitalize during the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic.
Washington’s DFI is a member of NASAA, the membership organization of state and provincial securities regulators in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The task force consists of state and provincial securities regulators and was formed to identify and stop potential threats to investors stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Task force members are using online investigative techniques to identify websites and social media posts that may be offering or promoting fraudulent offerings, investment frauds and unregistered regulated activities.
To assist in protecting investors from COVID-19 investment scams, DFI also encourages public reporting of suspected fraudulent COVID-19 investment offers. Investors who see or suspect they fell victim to COVID-19 related investment scams can contact the agency toll-free at 877-RING-DFI (746-4334), locally at 360-902-8730 or via email at securities@dfi.wa.gov.
To help investors identify common telltale signs of possible investment fraud, DFI suggests three questions to ask before making a new investment:
▪ Is the investment being offered with a guaranteed high return with little or no risk? All investments carry risk that you may potentially lose some or all of your money. Anyone who says their investment offer has no risk is lying. No one can guarantee an investment return.
▪ Is there a sense of urgency or limited availability of detailed information surrounding the investment? If someone offers you a “can’t miss” investment opportunity and pressures you to invest right now, don’t be afraid to walk away.
▪ Is the person offering the investment, and the investment itself, properly licensed or registered? For the same reasons you wouldn’t go to an unlicensed doctor or dentist, you should avoid unregistered investment salespeople and their products.
Washington state reports 217 new COVID-19 cases, 10 deaths
Updated at 8:40 a.m.
The Washington State Department of Health on Sunday reported 217 new confirmed COVID-19 cases and 10 additional deaths.
Statewide totals are now at 16,891 cases and 931 deaths, up from 16,674 cases and 921 deaths on Saturday.
King County continues to be the hardest hit with 7,007 cases and 500 deaths. Snohomish County has 2,681 cases and 117 deaths while Pierce County reported 1,321 cases and 48 deaths.
Garfield County remains the only county in the state without a confirmed case. There are 40 cases that haven’t been assigned a county.
The state has now conducted 248,875 tests with 6.8% coming back positive. Of those confirmed cases, 5.5% have resulted in death.
Gov. Jay Inslee announced Friday that five counties — Columbia, Ferry, Garfield, Lincoln and Pend Oreille — have been approved to move on to Phase 2 of the state’s reopening plan. All have reported two or less cases.
Three more counties — Kittitas, Skamania and Wahkiakum — have also applied to move forward and are under review. None of these counties have reported virus-related deaths.
Tacoma continues to give tax breaks to apartment developers even as COVID-19 saps budget
Updated at 8:40 a.m.
The city of Tacoma has approved tax exemptions to apartment developers at an increased rate in 2020 compared with 2019, even as the coronavirus pandemic saps the city’s budget and municipal employees are being laid off.
The city has granted 12 multifamily tax exemptions so far in 2020 as compared to four over the same time in 2019.
The 2020 projects will cost the state an estimated $12.5 million in property taxes, and the city roughly $2.8 million at a time when the city if facing a $40 million deficit related to the COVID-19 outbreak.
City officials say the trade-off is more than worth it in construction jobs, projected sales taxes generated by the new apartment dwellers, construction taxes and the addition of desperately needed new housing.
“When we take this action, what we’re doing is we’re fostering much-needed development,” Tacoma City Council member Lillian Hunter said at a meeting May 5. “While there is a tax abatement included here, there’s also much to be gained with the increase of units for people to live in.”
An economist contacted by The News Tribune questioned whether the city’s estimates still work during the current economic downturn.
“Forecasts made prior to the pandemic that relied on projected sales, which often could be tied to economic activity, are most likely no longer valid,” said Neal Johnson of Sound Resource Economics.
United Way of Thurston County opens Phase 37 and CARES Emergency Food and Shelter Assistance grant application
Updated at 8:40 a.m.
United Way of Thurston County has received federal funds from the US Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency through the Emergency Food and Shelter Program, Phase 37 and CARES Act.
Through a grant application process, the funds in the amount of $145,989 for Phase 37 and $208,139 for CARES, a total amount of $354,128 will go to organizations providing emergency food and shelter to individuals and/or families in Thurston County.
Under the funding guidelines, organizations may apply for funds in the following areas: Utilities, Supplies and Equipment, Served Meals, Mass Food, Rent/Mortgage, Other Shelter and Mass Shelter.
Non-profit, faith-based or governmental organizations that provide emergency food or shelter are eligible to apply for these funds. The intent is to supplement and expand currently available resources for emergency food and shelter in Thurston County.
Prioritization will be based on the needs of the community. Visit https://www.unitedway-thurston.org/emergency-food-and-shelter-program to apply for the grant.
Application review starts five days after opening. Applications must be submitted by 5:00 p.m., May 18, 2020. Questions regarding the application, contact Paul Larsen at plarsen@unitedway-thurston.com or 360-943-2773 ext. 113.
This story was originally published May 11, 2020 at 8:43 AM.
