Kāpiti Coast District Mayor K Gurunathan is asking Kāpiti residents to continue to stay in their bubbles while the country prepares to move to COVID-19 Alert Level 3 next week.

“This is not the time to become complacent, we still have a long fight ahead. The actions we take in the next few days and weeks will have a long lasting effect on our community’s wellbeing so I’m asking all our residents to stick to the rules and to be patient and kind.”

The Mayor said while the alert level is being reduced from four to three at 11.59pm on Monday 27 April significant restrictions will remain in place.

“Under Alert Level 3 the district’s public libraries, pools, playgrounds and community venues will remain closed.

“We’ll continue to deliver essential services and, for the most part, Council staff will continue to work remotely to limit the amount of contact they have in the community.

The Mayor said it was likely that the Otaihanga and Ōtaki transfer stations would re-open under alert level three.

“There’s a lot of detail to be worked through and the operators of these facilities need to be satisfied that they can operate safely and effectively under the government’s COVID-19 guidelines.

“We’ll be updating the COVID-19 page on our Council’s website once we have more clarity on the situation and will do our best to communicate any changes.

The Council’s virtual emergency operations centre and welfare support helpline will continue to operate remotely during Alert Level 3. The Mayor says it is too early to say when the emergency operations centre would be stood down at this stage.

“We know there are a lot of people struggling out there right now and it’s critically important that our emergency operations centre continues to connect with our local government and health partners across the region to coordinate what will be a sustained response and recovery effort.

“Moving to Alert Level 3 will still mean people who have no other means of support will need help to access essential supplies such as food and medication. As such our welfare support helpline, which can be accessed by calling the Council on 0800 486 486, will remain active.”

The Mayor said Councillors would continue to connect remotely to progress discussions about how the Council best supports the Kāpiti Coast to recover from the impacts of COVID-19.

“This is a dynamic and changing situation. As a Council, we’ll continue to look for new and innovative ways to support our community and our economy to recover in the coming weeks, months and years, while balancing the need to do our job and deliver essential services in a sustainable way.

“We will bounce back from this but it will take time. For now, we all need to do what is being asked of us to make sure we don’t lose sight of any of the gains we’ve made in our fight against COVID-19. So stay in your bubble and be patient and kind.”

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