Hastings District Council has closed two facilities and is making changes across the remainder following the Prime Ministers announcement that New Zealand is at Level 2 of the new four-stage COVID-19 alert system.

The Havelock North i-Site and the Hastings Sports Centre will be closed until further notice. Some facilities will open late on Monday to enable deep cleaning and minor changes to services to align with the Level 2 alert guidelines.

Chief Executive Nigel Bickle said the Council had the safety of the community and its staff as its top priority as it reviewed its operations.

“We are very well placed to respond to this rapidly changing issue. We are activating our business continuity plans to ensure our essential services are supported, while also looking at how we can continue to deliver some of our services safely.”

The Customer Service Centre will open at 9am, the Hastings i-Site will open at 10am, and the libraries, pools and Flaxmere Community Centre at 12pm. Other facilities will open as usual.

“As an organisation, we recognise the importance of our services in the community and we are taking the advice of the Ministry of Health extremely seriously.

“We are working through supporting our vulnerable staff to stay safe, as well as ways to ensure physical distancing in our workplaces. We will be working differently – it requires a culture shift across the organisation and we are dedicated to achieving it.”

Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst urged people to keep calm – shop normally, be kind and be sensible.

“We will have a lot of people in our community feeling anxiety as the number of cases increases along with the restrictions on our normal way of life.

“Check in with your family, your friends and your colleagues. Many are feeling worried about a range of things - their own health, the health of their loved ones, their employment, or their businesses. It’s important we look out for each other right now.”

For more information on COVID-19 go to www.covid-19.govt.nz. For information on council services go to www.hastingsdc.govt.nz/covid-19.

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