By Mike Kruzman / news@whmi.com


Hamburg Township officials have updated their COVID-19 protocols and policy.

Hamburg Township Supervisor Pat Hohl said at Tuesday’s Board of Trustees meeting that they began working on this last week before new directives came down from the state health department. The work continued through that morning with township department heads. Hohl said when their policy was written in the spring, they didn’t know all that they know now.

Newly added to the document are COVID-19 symptoms, a requirement for all staff to wear masks at any time they are not alone in their personal office and at all meetings, and definition to better clarify who might have become exposed to the disease. Treasurer Jason Negri took exception to the mask rule sparking a debate that ended with the addition that those with medical conditions could be exempt. Negri’s issues with the masks came more from a comfort standpoint, but he said if it passed, he would wear one. Negri later seconded the motion to approve the amended policy and voted in favor of it.

The Board of Trustees also discussed what the next three weeks will look like at the township level, as some other municipalities in the county have closed their offices. Supervisor said that consistent with the direction from department heads, the township will remain open to the public for the time being. But they are also expediting the approval process to allow people to work from home when recommended by their department head. Hohl said each department head will be allowed to manage their business over the next couple of weeks as they see fit because a “one size fits all” solution doesn’t work for all departments.

As for their next meeting on December 1st, the Board elected to hold it in person at the town hall, with only Clerk Mike Dolan voting against it.