Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/1251501
8 UCW MAY 27-JUNE 2, 2020 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Fayetteville and Cumberland County Commu- nity Development Departments are responding to the economic impacts being experienced by small businesses because of the coronavirus pandemic. Funding has been made available by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development through the Community Development Block Grant Program. Separate projects are being administered by Fayetteville and Cumberland County Community Development Departments. Financial assistance is available from county government to small for-profit businesses with up to 10 employees at the time of application. Up to $10,000 in grant funding can be provided to for-profit businesses operating out- side the city of Fayetteville in Cumberland County. Fayetteville City Council approved funding for bridge loans to help small business operations while they await approval of federal loans. e program is funded for $260,000, providing individual business- es up to $5,000. e goals of the bridge loans are to provide immediate relief so small businesses in the city of Fayetteville can stay open and limit job losses until they qualify for longer-term disaster funding from the SBA or other funding sources. Keep the water running Stay-at-home orders have changed the way our community's people shop, eat, do business and go to school. When buildings are vacant or operate at significantly reduced capacity for an extended time, the water is left sitting in the pipes. Disease-causing microorganisms can grow, and corrosion control can be impacted. To remove stale and potentially unhealthy water in buildings, the Fayetteville Public Works Commission suggests preparations be taken to reopen properties when the time comes. e key is to flush water systems and devices. For larger buildings, a single flush isn't enough to re-establish good water quality. Flushing should be a part of the cleaning and routine maintenance that will have to be completed before reopening. PWC recommends performing a final flush 24 to 48 hours before a building officially reopens. Consider the following steps when flushing your facilities: Flush all faucets (remove faucet aerators if possible) for 10 to 30 minutes, open all outlets at once to flush the service line, and then open them again, individually, beginning near where the water enters the building. Flush cold water first, then flush hot water until it reaches its maximum temperature. Follow manufacturer recommendations to flush water fountains, hot-water tanks, hot-water recircu- lating loops, ice makers, dishwashers, humidifiers and cooling towers. Veterans Affairs and hydroxychloroquine Facing growing criticism, the Department of Vet- erans Affairs said it will not stop use of an unproven malaria drug on veterans with COVID-19, but that fewer of its patients are now taking it. In responses provided to Congress and obtained by e Asso- ciated Press, the VA said it never "encouraged or discouraged" its government-run hospitals to use hydroxychloroquine on patients. Still, it acknowl- edged that VA Secretary Robert Wilkie had wrongly asserted publicly without evidence that the drug had been shown to benefit younger veterans. e VA also agreed more study was needed on the drug and suggested its use was now limited to extenuat- ing circumstances. e Veterans Affairs Department declined to say how many patients had been treated with hydroxychloroquine for the coronavirus since January. Still, a recent analysis of VA hospital data showed that hundreds of veterans had taken it by early April. "Any drug used to treat patients with COVID-19, especially veterans living with debilitat- ing preexisting conditions, must be proven safe and effective before it's administered," Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mt., said. "Given recent studies from both VA and other hospitals, hydroxychloroquine seems to fall short of those requirements." COVID-19 treatment medication available locally Cape Fear Valley Medical Center will receive an allocation of remdesivir from the North Caroina Department of Health and Human Services to aid in the treatment of COVID-19 patients. e first patients received remdesivir doses last week. It's an investigational antiviral medication that has been evaluated in clinical trials. Based on preliminary results, e U.S. Food and Drug Administration is- sued an Emergency Use Authorization to permit the use of remdesivir for the treatment of hospitalized adults and children with severe infection. Gilead Sciences, Inc. is donating 607,000 vials of remdesivir over the next few months for use across the country. Cape Fear Valley's allocation is based on the medi- cal center's percentage of hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Hospitals receiving remdesivir must assess and document that patients meet specific criteria. "ere are many requirements on the hospital in or- der to receive this therapy and our pharmacy team, providers and nurses are all excited to meet this challenge so that we can offer another life-saving treatment for COVID patients from Cumberland County and the region," said Christopher Tart, vice president of professional services at Cape Fear Val- ley Health. Cumberland County School Superintendent honored e North Caro- lina School Super- intendents' Asso- ciation and the North Carolina Alliance for School Leadership Development have announced the selec- tion of Cumberland County Schools Superintendent Dr. Marvin Connelly, Jr. as the recipient of the Dr. Samuel Houston Leadership Award. is award is presented to a graduate of the NCSSA Next Generation Superin- tendent Development Program. e program covers the essential leadership competencies of a school superintendent: visioning and goal setting, superin- tendent/board relationships, leading for improved teaching and learning, human resource leadership and systems leadership. e award is named in honor of Dr. Samuel Hous- ton, Jr., who is president and chief executive officer of the North Carolina Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education Center. "Dr. Connelly exem- plifies the traits that have guided Dr. Sam Houston's career in educational leadership," said NCSSA Executive Director Jack Hoke. "I am humbled and honored to receive the Dr. Sam Houston Leadership Award," said Dr. Connelly. Local government small business beneficiaries by JEFF THOMPSON NEWS DIGEST JEFF THOMPSON, Reporter. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcom- ingweekly.com. 910-484-6200. Dr. Marvin Connelly Jr.