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Scroggins stresses need for COVID-19 vaccinations in Shelby County

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Photo by Erin Nelson. Starnes Media

County Manager Chad Scroggins addressed the topic of COVID-19 vaccinations during the Jan. 25 Shelby County Commission meeting. 

Scroggins said scenarios and plans have been put in place should the county be able to acquire the vaccine, and that Shelby Baptist Medical Center has offered their assistance along with freezer storage space. There’s just the issue of availability of the shots. 

“The limiting factor is vaccines,” Scroggins said. “We heard your commitment and have gone as far as putting in place the ability to drop temporary and part-time pharmacists, RNs and medical EMT’s to do mass vaccinations should the county be able to acquire the vaccines.”

Scroggins said the county will do anything that needs to be done in order to bolster what the Alabama Department of Public Health is currently doing.

“The more vaccines we can get into smaller clinics and pharmacies spread out across our county where our residents can make appointments directly through them and become vaccinated at different clinics, be it a small doctor’s offices or pharmacies. Whatever it takes to get the vaccine in as many avenues as possible,” Scroggins said.

On Jan 15, EMA Director Hub Harvey was able to secure a vaccine clinic with a finite number of 500 vaccines. By the time the clinic opened at 8:30 a.m. the next morning, there were 575 in line at the Pelham Civic Complex for 500 vaccines to be administered by the ADPH, and they were all administered by noon.

“We are not sure when the next vaccine clinic will be in our county,” Scroggins said. “They assured us one for Feb. 3, but  that has since been pulled and they are telling us they are using all vaccines for second round shots. We're here to serve our residents, and we are concerned and frustrated about the availability of the vaccines themselves.” 

Scroggins also noted that Amy Sturdivant recently began her role as 58 INC.’s new managing director of economic development and that Shelby County’s manager of community services, Reggie Holloway, will have his last day of employment with the county this Friday. 

“He’s done an excellent job for many years and is a great mentor to a lot of people on our staff,” Scroggins said. “We will truly miss Reggie and his work.”

County engineer Randy Cole also received approval from the commission to negotiate for a piece of small property to offset a portion of the needed right-of-way acquisition from the adjacent property owner that will to offset the cost for adjacent land for the right-of-way. 

Cole also said that the county plans to open bids on that project sometime in March. 

“Not only will we realign the intersection, it will relocate the county’s water line as well,” he said. “We get road work, water work and a traffic signal project out of it. It will be a fairly involved project but one that's sorely needed for safety in the Chelsea community.”

Also approved by the commission:

The next Shelby County Commission meeting will be Feb. 8 at 8:30 a.m. at the Shelby County Administration Building in Columbiana. 

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