Good evening, this is First Selectwoman Peggy Lyons with today’s weekly update.

Madison currently has 33 active COVID-19 cases in our community, with 1 resident hospitalized and, gratefully, no new fatalities. As of yesterday, Madison Public Schools had 12 active cases, including students and staff. Similar to many towns across Connecticut, we can be grateful that our cases are slowly declining.  However, community spread remains and we still need to follow all necessary precautions to stop the spread of this disease, including wearing a mask, avoiding gatherings with those outside our household, washing our hands frequently, and getting tested when showing symptoms or coming in to close contact with an infected person.  

Vaccinations

I am grateful that the Town has been able to host two successful vaccination clinics for seniors 75 years or older. So far, each clinic has successfully vaccinated approximately 80 seniors, many from Madison and other shoreline communities.  Given there are still many residents seeking these local appointments, we hope to continue to offer weekly clinics on Thursdays at the Town Campus Gym (on an appointment only basis) while supplies are available.    Enrollment for next week’s clinic will open this Monday at noon through the CDC’s Vaccine Management System (VAMS).   Many shoreline towns, including Guilford and Branford, are offering weekly clinics through VAMS as well.  If you are a Madison resident age 75 years and older and have not scheduled an appointment for your first dose of the vaccine, please contact the Senior Center at (203) 245-5627 for assistance.  It is important to schedule your appointment prior to younger age populations becoming eligible in the coming weeks.

To make an appointment in VAMS, please visit https://vams.cdc.gov/vaccineportal or call Connecticut’s COVID Vaccine Appointment Assistance Line at (877) 918-2224. Also note that starting next week, some CVS Pharmacies in Connecticut will be administering vaccines to eligible residents onsite, including the CVS located in Guilford.  Appointments can be scheduled directly with the store at www.cvs.com.

Tax Office

I want to point out to property owners that the Tax Collector’s Office is experiencing a high volume of phone calls, voicemails, and emails. One of the challenges of working remotely at times is returning telephone calls.  Sometimes office personnel responding to inquiries may appear as “blocked/restricted” and will necessitate leaving a message identifying themselves, resulting in further delays. You can also reach out via email at kiesewetterca@madisonct.org. Please be patient as they try to be as responsive as possible and address your concerns. 

State of the Town

Finally, I want to highlight that last week Madison held its Annual Town Meeting through a virtual format. This is required by our town charter and involves a presentation on the “State of the Town”. Understandably, the Town was forced to navigate through some unusual circumstances last year, including a 100-year pandemic, a volatile economy, major weather events, and national civil unrest. In addition, many of our residents endured severe illness, the loss of loved ones, or a change in their economic circumstances.  Despite these challenges, we can be grateful for the many blessings we share; Madison is a highly desirable place to live and offers many important community and natural assets to enjoy.  These assets, along with a favorable economic profile and healthy Town finances, should position us well for a strong recovery. Our local government can also point to a number of important policy and operational improvements to help us meet some major challenges. To learn more, I encourage everyone to watch the Town Meeting video and view the presentation, which are both available on the Town website at www.madisonct.org.  

Stay safe and healthy Madison.

Peggy Lyons
First Selectwoman