Maldden alld a Vol. 29, No. 19 den AADD -FREEwww.advocatenews.net The Advocate - A Household Word in Malden! CTE OCAT AT Published Every Friday Batter Up 617-387-2200 By Steve Freker M alden had avoided the tag since the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) instituted its COVID-19 risk assessment map in mid-August. But Wednesday night, the DPH announced that Malden was among the 40 communities on the “Red” list designation this week, as the numbers nearly doubled from last week’s previous high of 23. The number of highest risk “Red” cities and towns skyrocketed 74 percent from last week’s numbers. A “Red” designation represents the highest risk number of the color-coded COVID-19 risk maps, with at least 8.0 new cases per 100,000 residents. This week Malden showed an average daily incidence rate of 10.4 cases over the past 14 days, its highest since the COVID risk map began on August 12. E Friday, October 9, 2020 Malden designated as “Red” on Mass. DPH COVID-19 risk map Among highest-to-date 40 communities listed “highest transmission risk” this week as state number soars Many communities surrounding and bordering Malden have been designated in “Red” since the map’s inception in mid-August, including Everett, Revere, Chelsea and Lynn. Saugus has been in and out of “Red,” and Medford was “Red” for two weeks in August but is now in “Yellow.” Malden city officials were scheduled to meet yesterday (after Malden Advocate press deadline) to discuss any next steps to be taken around the community to address what has transpired. To that end, Malden Mayor Gary Christenson was scheduled to host his regular COVID-19 Community Update televised program on Malden Access TV (MATV) last night, where he and Malden Health Director Chris Webb were expected to address the issue. Immediately after the report RED | SEE PAGE 4 Malden Police Officer Mike Langston teaches hitting in the cage during the Malden Recreation Dept.’s Baseball Clinic at Malden Catholic this past weekend. See photo highlights on page 12. (Advocate photo by Josh London) Mayor offers restaurant relief Proposes elimination of licensing fee to help restaurants survive Special to Th e Advocate I t is no surprise that Malden’s restaurants have suff ered tremendously during this pandemic. The impact of COVID-19 has been that it has shut out their customers for months at a time, made their patrons reluctant to return when they fi nally could and absolutely decimated their earnings and savings. And at the time of this reporting, restaurants are still not allowed to be at full occupancy, and many have spent thousands of dollars to take advantage of the city of Malden’s expanded outdoor seating program and installed state-mandated plexiglass barriers and implemented new safety protocols. The positives are that restaurants have shown an amazing resilience. As optimism starts to build across the Commonwealth that there may be light at the end of the tunnel, Mayor Gary Christenson is providing further assistance to the restaurants. In a proposal sent to the Licensing Board, he has asked for their consideration to waive the liquor licensing fees for restaurants for the upcoming year. For some restaurants, this could be a savings of $3,500 at a time when every dollar is tight and the usual annual fees would be extraordinarily burdensome. Knowing that restaurants provide hundreds of jobs, important services and social and entertainment outlets for both residents and visitors, it is a wise move for the City of Malden to step up and help them during their time of need. Malden replaces more than 200 lead water service lines despite COVID-19 By Steve Freker O ver 200 lead water service lines have been replaced to date this year, despite the challenges and restrictions faced by the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, an innovative ordinance change fi rst initiated by Councillor-at-Large Craig Spadafora mandating the replacement of lead lines before ownership of residential or commercial parcels can take place has led to 38 more lines replaced, helping make the city even safer. The City of Malden Engineering Department in coordination with the Public Works Department recently reported the replacement of Craig Spadafora Councillor-at-Large COVID-19 | SEE PAGE 5
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