Free At-Home COVID Test Kits

The Federal Government has launched a website for Americans to order at-home rapid Covid-19 testing kits.  Every home in the U.S. is eligible to order 4 free at-home Covid-19 tests. The tests are completely free. 

Please use the link below to order your kits:

COVIDtests.gov - Free at-home COVID-19 tests

Long Pond Town Landing Project – Public Presentation

On January 18, 2022, the Town of Brewster held a public forum via Zoom to discuss planned improvements at the Long Pond Town Landing. Click here to view the video of the meeting.

The PowerPoint presentation is available to download as a PDF:

• Long Pond Town Landing Improvements Presentation

The draft site plan for the project is available to download:

• Long Pond Town Landing Project Draft Site Plan

Public comments will be accepted until February 1, 2022. Comments may be sent to ckenny@brewster-ma.gov

Brewster Elementary Schools Study Findings to Be Presented by Habeeb & Associates Architects

Brewster Elementary Schools and the Town of Brewster engaged Habeeb & Associates Architects to conduct a study of possible facility options that would meet the educational needs of both the current and the projected enrollment of the pre-kindergarten through grade 5 student population.

The study evaluated two Brewster school buildings, Stony Brook Elementary School and Eddy Elementary School. The analysis considered enrollment trends, building capacities, quality of space, flexibility of space, instructional practices, programmatic needs, technology infrastructure, and school use. Based on the projected enrollment of the student population and the desired educational program of the Brewster Elementary Schools, several options were developed to meet the needs of this student population. The intent of the report is to provide a basis for long-term educational facilities planning as the Town of Brewster determines the measures that will be necessary to support the changing educational needs of the community.

Steven Habeeb, President and Principal Architect, and Jack Shea, Educational Planner, will present highlights of the report to the community on Tuesday, March 1 at 6:00 PM.  Residents will have an opportunity to ask questions and make comments at this public forum.

Public presentations on the report will also be made at the Brewster School Committee meeting on Thursday January 20 at 6:30PM and the Brewster Select Board meeting on Monday January 24 at 6:00PM.  School staff will be briefed as well on Tuesday February 1, 2022 at 2:15PM.

All meetings will be held remotely pursuant Governor Baker’s June 16, 2021 Act Extending Certain COVID-19 Measure Adopted During the State of Emergency, which includes an extension of the remote meeting provisions of his March 12, 2020, Executive Order Suspending Certain Provisions of the Open Meeting Law until April 1, 2022.

Nauset Superintendent Search - Public Forums

On January 8, the Superintendent Search Committee recommended four finalists to move to the next phase of the selection process. Sara Ahern, superintendent in Franklin, MA; Brooke Clenchy, Interim Superintendent for Nauset Public Schools; Andrea Schwamb, Assistant Superintendent for Wareham Public Schools; and Frank Tiano, interim Middle School Principal in Dover Sherborn and former Superintendent in Uxbridge, MA were advanced. On Wednesday evening, January 12th, Sara Ahern withdrew her application for the position in Nauset, accepting an offer from the Barnstable School Committee to be their next Superintendent.

Schedule of Public Forums with Superintendent Finalists:

ZOOM LINK FOR ALL PUBLIC FORUMS: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86036579697?pwd=aFNQMTlWdlYrb3hRc0UxK1lXeUxwdz09

• Brooke Clenchy January 24, 2022 @ 6:30 pm
• Frank Tiano January 25, 2022 @ 6:30 pm
• Andrea Schwamb January 26, 2022 @ 6:30 pm

Meeting ID: 860 3657 9697
Passcode: 469654
One tap mobile
+13017158592,,86036579697#,,,,*469654# US (Washington DC)
+13126266799,,86036579697#,,,,*469654# US (Chicago)

A feedback form will be available on the Nauset Public School Website for participants to capture their impressions and thoughts.
 

Brewster Select Board Opposes Plan to Release Radioactive Water into Cape Cod Bay

The Brewster Select Board voted at their January 10, 2022 meeting to send a letter in opposition of the release of any radioactive water from the decommissioned Pilgrim Nuclear Power Plant into Cape Cod Bay. The full letter, sent to the President of Holtec Decommissioning International, the Governor and our local Legislative Delegation can be read here.

Brewster Fire & Rescue Awarded Fire Equipment Grant

Brewster Fire/Rescue has been awarded $18,461.40 by the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security and the Department of Fire Services through their FY22 Fire Equipment Grant program. This competitive grant award will furnish the department with supplemental capital to purchase mobile radio communication equipment designed to ensure firefighters are afforded robust and effective communication capabilities at structure fires and other emergency events and will also be used to purchase specialized rescue saws that firefighters use during numerous scenarios including ventilating smoke, heat, and deadly gases from the interior of buildings on fire and cutting and removing debris, construction material, wood, and other fixed objects during emergency life-saving rescue operations of entrapped firefighters or civilians. This equipment will be utilized at emergency incidents in Brewster and during responses to our regional automatic and mutual aid partner communities. This is Brewster Fire/Rescue’s second grant award through this program which was established by the Commonwealth in FY21.

Brewster Fire/Rescue would like to thank the Governor’s Office, the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, and the Department of Fire Services for their past and continued support given to the Town of Brewster and their sustained efforts to improve the working conditions and safety of firefighters across the Commonwealth.

Regional Recreational Shellfishing Survey

Calling all recreational shellfishers! Did you participate in recreational shellfishing in Brewster or one of the other 14 Cape towns in 2019 and 2020?  If yes, we need your help!  Please take this 15-minute survey. Your feedback will help describe the value of these fisheries and identify ways to support recreational shellfishing on Cape Cod.  

For more information, go to: https://seagrant.whoi.edu/recreational-shellfishing-survey/ or click here to download a flyer.

Baker-Polito Administration Launches Tool for Residents to Access COVID-19 Digital Vaccine Card

“My Vax Records” Provides New Option to Access Vaccine History and QR Code to Verify COVID-19 Vaccination

BOSTON– The Baker-Polito Administration today announced a tool that gives residents a new way to access their COVID-19 digital vaccine card and vaccination history. The new tool, called My Vax Records, allows people who received their vaccination in Massachusetts to access their own vaccination history and generate a COVID-19 digital vaccine card, which would contain similar vaccination information to a paper CDC card. The COVID-19 digital vaccine cards produced by the system utilize the SMART Health Card platform and generate a QR code that can be used to verify vaccination.  The Administration is not requiring residents to show proof of vaccination to enter any venue, but this tool will help residents who would like to access and produce a digital copy of their record.

Access the new tool at MyVaxRecords.Mass.Gov.

How It Works: The new tool is easy to use: a person enters their name, date of birth, and mobile phone number or email associated with their vaccine record. After creating a 4-digit PIN, the user receives a link to their vaccine record that will open upon re-entry of the PIN.

The electronic record shows the same information as a paper CDC vaccine card: name, date of birth, date of vaccinations, and vaccine manufacturer. It also includes a QR code that makes these same details readable by a QR scanner, including smartphone apps. Once the SMART Health Card is received, users are able to save the QR code to their phone, such as the Apple Wallet, screenshot the information and save it to their phone’s photos, or print out a copy for a paper record. The system follows national standards for security and privacy.

This system provides an optional way that residents can access their vaccination information and a COVID-19 digital vaccine card. This will provide residents with another tool to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination, should it be requested by businesses, local governments, or other entities.

The system leverages the Massachusetts Immunization Information System (MIIS), the official database used by health care providers across the state to record vaccination information. The system relies on hundreds of providers inputting demographic and health information. Some users may not be able to immediately find their record, or may find an incomplete record. Residents whose record cannot be found or is incomplete can either contact their health care provider or contact the MIIS team to update their records. Learn more about the tool and view frequently-asked-questions at www.mass.gov/myvaxrecord.

Massachusetts has worked with VCI,™ a voluntary coalition of public and private organizations which developed the open-source SMART Health Card Framework in use by other states. The VCI coalition is dedicated to improving privacy and security of patient information, making medical records portable and reducing healthcare fraud.

My Vax Records is just one way residents can obtain their COVID vaccination record. Pharmacies that administered the COVID vaccine and many health care providers also are making SMART Health Cards available, or are providing additional options. Learn more.

Public Forum on Millstone Road Construction Project – February 17 at 6PM

The Town of Brewster has been developing plans for road improvements on Millstone Road since 2017.  Project goals include improving safety for vehicles, pedestrians, and bicyclists and providing better connections to other transportation networks and community amenities.  After reaching the 75% design stage in Fall 2020, work on this proposed project was temporarily suspended in Spring 2021.  The Town will be holding a fourth public forum on Thursday February 17, 2022 at 6PM-8PM to give a status update on the project and provide residents with an opportunity to ask questions and make comments. 

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83913461297?pwd=RUl5VmsrRXhHOHZMbzZMNXJHZmJ3dz09

Passcode: 539760
US: +1 312 626 6799  or +1 929 436 2866
Webinar ID: 839 1346 1297
Passcode: 539760

Following this forum, residents will be asked to submit written input on the revised design before the Select Board determines next steps.  The Select Board has identified the resolution of this project and the development of a community-wide road improvement capital plan as a goal in their most recent Strategic Plan. 

Please visit the new webpage for additional details and background about this proposed project.

NEW – COVID VACCINATION and TEST CLINICS

TEST CLINICS
Massachusetts Stop the Spread drive-thru testing site at the Cape Cod Melody Tent, 21 West Main Street Hyannis, MA 02601. 

Free PCR testing and Walk-Ins welcome

Mondays: 9AM -1PM
Tuesdays: 1PM – 6PM
Wednesdays: 9AM-1PM 

VACCINATION CLINICS
MA Department of Public Health Vaccination Clinics at Cape Cod Community College, 2240 Iyannough Road West Barnstable, MA 02668

Sundays: 12PM – 6PM
Tuesdays: 8AM – 2PM
Thursdays: 8AM – 2PM

Register at:  COVID-19 Vaccine Availability | Mass.gov