Editorial: Kudos to those who supported school supply drive palmbeachdailynews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from palmbeachdailynews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Daily News Editorial Staff
Time to move forward.
Last week, the Town Council ended its local state of emergency, 15 months after enacting it at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. With more people being vaccinated and the number of infected people dropping precipitously, council members finally felt it was time to let the order expire.
The edict gave town officials wider powers to combat the spread of the virus. The town should be applauded for the way it exercised that authority: By enacting a mask mandate, establishing a curfew, being the first to close beaches and allowing boards to conduct meetings virtually.
Daily News Editorial Staff This was quite the year for you.
So said Town Council member Julie Araskog to Kirk Blouin recently after the board reappointed the town manager for another year and gave him a 6 percent raise.
It is well deserved.
Since his appointment in January 2018 to replace Tom Bradford, Mr. Blouin has more than proven himself.
Mr. Blouin led the town s astute response to the COVID pandemic, which included being the first municipality to close its beach, adding a curfew, closing the Lake Trail temporarily and being the first town to secure vaccines from the county for its residents. The former public safety chief s police training showed as the town was on the forefront of measures aimed at protecting the public s safety.