Around Town

Watertown Has a Third Positive Test for Coronavirus

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Watertown has a third positive test for Coronavirus, the Watertown Health Department announced Thursday, with the second case coming over the weekend. The Health Department said it cannot release information about the people who tested positive for COVID-19, including where they live and work. They said they are trying to track any people they may have been in contact with. In the statement about the second Watertown case, the Health Department indicated that the person had no link to the Watertown Public Schools. The announcement about the third case did not have that information (See the announcement farther below).

Around Town

See How the Coronavirus Has Impacted Banks in Watertown

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Some banks have closed their lobbies in response to the Coronavirus outbreak, others have cut back their hours and some, mostly the large banks, remain open with regular hours but with extra efforts to disinfect their branches. Watertown Savings Bank announced Wednesday that it will be closing its lobbies, but the drive-up locations are still open. It provided the following information:

All drive‑up services will remain open for bank transactions. If you use our drive‑up services, you will notice that we are taking extra precautions — such as having our team wear protective gloves — to ensure your and our employees’ safety. While prudent, this makes certain transactions, like counting money, somewhat harder and some transactions may take longer.

Around Town

Gov. Baker Orders Most Day Care to Close During Coronavirus Crisis

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Most childcare providers will be closed beginning Monday in an effort to stop the Coronavirus (COVID-19), Gov. Charlie Baker announced Wednesday. Baker said that most child care providers would be closed, but added the state was also looking to create “a process for opening exempt emergency child care programs,” according to a Boston Globe article. The emergency child care programs will be for families of medical staff, emergency personnel and “others critical to fighting the COVID-19 outbreak,” Baker said. These programs will be the only ones allowed to operate during this state of emergency, Baker added. The state will continue to give childcare providers subsidy payments to help them through the Coronavirus crisis.

Around Town

Grocery Store Chain Opening Early to Allow Older Customers to Shop

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Supermarket chain Stop & Shop announced that it will soon start opening early to allow shoppers 60 and older to get their groceries as part of their efforts for social distancing due to the Coronavirus. Stop & Shop said it would open early to allow give older people to shop before the broader public can start shopping. “To support this group, beginning Thursday, March 19th, all Stop & Shop stores will open earlier in order to service only customers who are age 60 and over from 6:00a.m.-7:30a.m. daily.” “We’re making the decision to offer this every day of the week to allow for community members in this age category to shop in a less crowded environment, which better enables social distancing. They’ll also be shopping prior to any other customers entering.”

Around Town

Watertown Library Increasing Numbers of Titles Available Online, Find Out How to Access Them

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Watertown Free Public Library

The Watertown Free Public Library may have closed during the Coronavirus outbreak, but that does not mean people can’t access books, videos and music. The Library has a number of ways to access ebooks, audiobooks, videos and more, and the staff has added more copies of popular titles. There is also content for kids, access to newspapers and magazines and information to medical information. The following announcement came from the Watertown Library:

Here’s what we’re doing at the Watertown Free Public Library to keep you digitally connected to books and media while we’re closed. We’ve increased our digital collections.

Coronavirus

Watertown Mall Cancels Spring into Spring Event

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The Watertown Mall announced that the Spring into Spring event scheduled for March 19 has been cancelled due to the outbreak of the Corona virus. The Watertown Mall sent out the following statement:

The Watertown Mall, located at 550 Arsenal Street, together with Watertown Families Together are sad to announce that we will have to cancel the event Spring into Spring which was originally scheduled for Thursday, March 19th. Due to the current circumstances, we believe it is best to postpone the event until we can be assured that it is safe for our community. At this time, the event has not been rescheduled for a later date.

Business

See Which Watertown Restaurants are Offering Take Out or Delivery

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With Gov. Baker’s order to close restaurants, they will be one of the hardest hit during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The vast majority of Watertown restaurants remain open for take out, and many also deliver. Many restaurants around town put up messages on social media or on their websites. Food delivery apps such as Grubhub or DoorDash offer delivery from many places around town. If you know of others, please send information to watertownmanews@gmail.com or leave a comment below.

Coronavirus

Watertown Police Asking Residents to Call First, Try to Avoid Coming into Station

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In an effort to stop the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19), the Watertown Police Department requested that people to avoid coming into the lobby of the Police Station, except in an emergency. Police Chief Michael Lawn sent out the request to avoid coming into the Police Station, and urged people to call. The Watertown Police also changed their policy during this period for filing reports. They can now be taken over the phone. Lawn also noted that officers may ask questions about residents’ health when responding to their home or business.