MANSFIELD — Richland County commissioners are likely moving forward with plans for a local COVID-19 messaging system that could utilize DRM Productions and its retriever digital signage program.
Commissioners are still finalizing the details, but reacted favorably to the plan after meeting with company owner Jay Miller on Tuesday morning.
“We are comfortable with the plan and are planning to move forward barring unforeseen circumstances,” Commissioner Tony Vero said. “Our COVID numbers are spiking and we need to be mindful of that. No one wants to go back to a lockdown.”
The Ohio Department of Heath has reported a statewide average of more than 8,000 new cases daily for the past 21 days, including 9,030 since Monday. It also reported 119 deaths in the last 24 hours and a record 585 new hospitalizations since Monday afternoon.
Richland Public Health spokesman Reed Richmond said Monday afternoon there had been 275 total local hospitalizations, including 66 currently. He said 59 of those hospitalizations have spent time in the ICU.
During a press briefing on Monday, Gov. Mike DeWine said he was asking every Ohio resident to pull back and limit their activities.
“There is a cause and effect to what we do – we can slow this down,” DeWine said. “The scariest thing is that there is no indication that we have plateaued. We haven’t seen anything like this for 100 years.”
Under the plan with DRM, the Mansfield company would provide large, wall-mounted monitors for county-owned buildings and would then provide subscription-based programming.
That program would allow commissioners and others, including Richland Public Health, to update messages regarding COVID-19 and other topics.
“The program has a web interface you can log into that has a ton of design templates you can use (for updating messages). Or you can email it to me and we will put it up,” Miller told commissioners.
Commissioners plan to use CARES Act funds to pay for the monitors and associated hardware, which will be installed by the county’s maintenance staff. The county will then pay an annual subscription fee of about $900 per building.
The size of the monitors, number of monitors and exactly which buildings will be used will be finalized by Thursday.
“We get a lot of information from the state, especially the governor’s office,” Commissioner Marilyn John said. “The health department issues reports. We just felt it would be a good idea, with the overall increase of (COVID-19) cases that we have a quick, easy system to use in getting messages out to the public.”
Also on Tuesday, commissioners met with Destination Mansfield–Richland County President Lee Tasseff, who provided details about the local travel and tourism industry during the pandemic.
His remarks were similar to a presentation Tasseff provided during a mid-year meeting with commissioners in August.
“It seems to strange to talk about it now, because 60 percent of it is gone. The only declarative statement I will make is, ‘If you wondered if (tourism) had any value, how do you you like it now that it’s missing?'” Tasseff said. in August.
In 2019, the 4,462 Richland County jobs generated by tourism represented 8.4 percent of the county’s total employment, Tasseff said in August, pointing out his agency had cut staff in half adjusted its efforts in an attempt to reposition itself for the future.
Tasseff said he has seen good signs since his prior visit — including two races at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in September — that the industry will bounce back when the pandemic slows or vaccines are rolled out.
He said Destination Mansfield-Richland will survive 2020 and is prepared for 2021.
“We are where we are today and we are positioned to go where we need to go,” he said. “We just need things to fall into place. As always, we will adapt as needed.”
