Coronavirus COVID-19 Updates: Leisure Services

ACC Leisure Services Announces Facility Hour Changes & End of Aquatics Season

After careful consideration, effective July 28, the Athens-Clarke County Leisure Services Department adjusted hours of operation for select facilities and end the aquatics season.

This update is a result of the changing health indicators in our community, state, and nation.

All Leisure Services parks and facilities will continue to operate under restricted use and limited public access. Operational hours will be adjusted at some facilities to allow for staff to work in alternate schedules in order to limit potential exposure and spread.

All facility operations will remain as currently scheduled with the following exceptions:

East Athens Community Center will be open Monday-Friday from noon to 8:00 p.m. Weekend hours remain the same (Saturday from 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. and Sunday from 2:00-6:00 p.m.).
Lay Park will be open Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from noon – 8:00 p.m., Tuesday and Thursday from 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Weekend hours remain the same (Saturday from 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. and Sunday from 2:00-6:00 p.m.).
Rocksprings Park will operate Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

All department pools and splash pads are now closed for the summer. Swim lessons will conclude as scheduled this week.

Bear Hollow Zoo is now closed.

The Morton Theatre will remain closed.

For more information, visit www.accgov.com/leisure or call 706-613-3800.

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GA Department of Public Health Daily Status Report Changes on July 28

Effective Tuesday, July 28, there are several improvements to the COVID-19 Daily Status Report on the Georgia Department of Public Health’s (DPH) website (https://dph.georgia.gov/covid-19-daily-status-report). These changes are designed to make the dashboard more user-friendly, while providing an accurate picture of COVID-19 in Georgia.

The changes to the Daily Status Report include:

Hovering or clicking on a county will show data for the last two weeks of Confirmed Cases and Cases per 100K along with total cases for both.
The new color scale for maps is based on the distribution of county-level case counts or rates, while outlier values are removed from the scale calculation. The scale will change every four weeks to accommodate increasing or decreasing case counts and maintain distinctions between counties. The scale will be calculated based on the current data at the beginning of each four-week period. DPH will publish historic maps when the scale changes.
The "Last 2 Weeks" map reflects the number of cases per 100,000 residents in the county reported during the previous two weeks, using 2018 U.S. Census data.
“COVID-19 Over Time” chart now has the option to select two date options: Date of Onset or Date of Report. These can also be viewed by county.
“Reported Today” numbers includes cases, deaths, hospitalizations and PCR laboratory tests in Georgia reported to DPH since the last update.
“Non-Georgia Resident” is now called “Non-GA Resident/Unknown State.” This category represents Non-Georgia residents and cases with unknown residence and may include in- and out-of-state cases.

DPH will regularly review and update features of the dashboard to improve data quality and accuracy.

1,507 Positive Cases Confirmed in Athens-Clarke County, 15 Deaths

The state Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) case tracker (https://dph.georgia.gov/covid-19-daily-status-report) confirms 1,507 positive cases of COVID-19 in Athens-Clarke County and 15 deaths as of 2:50 p.m. on July 28.

These are cumulative cases total since February 25, 2020. For reference, numbers from the beginning of each month:

July 1 - 574
June 1 - 293
May 1 - 155
April 1 - 54
March 1 - 4

The Daily Status Report is now updated once daily at 3:00 p.m. to allow time to process and validate laboratory and case reports. If you view the data, please be sure to check the area showing the definitions of the information presented. Some, such as "hospitalizations," have different meanings than what may be expected.

The 15 people who have died were ages 60-98. Eleven of those deaths occurred at a long-term care facility during March and April. For a daily report on long-term health care facilities in the state, visit the Georgia Department of Community Health’s website at dch.georgia.gov.

Older adults and people who have severe underlying medical conditions such as heart or lung disease or diabetes are at higher risk for developing more serious complications from COVID-19 and should always consult their healthcare provider if they are sick.

Frequency of Updates

This coronavirus email / text update is sent at least twice a week during normal weeks, with other updates as necessary with important information.

Questions can still be directed to www.accgov.com/coronavirus, which will be updated regularly, the info line at 706-613-3333, or coronavirus@accgov.com.