Supervisor Gerry Siller devoted the first part of the Town Board’s work session Wednesday to a discussing whether and when Shelter Island will get vaccines for local distribution.
The Town Board was called out by former Councilwoman Chris Lewis (now chair of the Shelter Island Senior Citizens Foundation) in a letter to the editor at the Shelter Island Reporter for not “creating a comprehensive plan to deliver the COVID-19 vaccine to those who are eligible.”
To the contrary, Siller said, it is a top priority for local leaders, and the Town Board and other Town agencies are focusing significant attention on the matter.
Along with Deputy Supervisor Amber Brach-Williams and Chief of Police James Read, Supervisor Siller said has been in a constant contact with officials at the county level, along with the East End Supervisors and Mayors Association, trying to get answers about COVID-19 vaccinations.
“I know a lot of people are getting upset,” he said at the Zoom meeting Wednesday. “I want everybody to know this is our priority. We’re doing everything we can. And everybody [across the East End] is in the same boat.”
The biggest obstacle to obtaining vaccines is that the federal supply “is just very limited,” Siller said. But, “everybody is putting their plans in place so if and when it gets here, they’ll be ready to move forward.”
New York State has established three sites on Long Island for vaccine distribution — Stony Brook University, Jones Beach, and Acqueduct Racetrack — but all became fully booked shortly after appointments were first posted. None were showing available appointments early Thursday.
In addition to the state-run points of distribution, Suffolk County has partnered with Northwell Health to offer vaccines at several locations around the county, including Brentwood with Riverhead opening soon (see the full list). But as with the state-run sites, appointments quickly fill now that the cutoff has been lowered to age 65.
Purchase a freezer?
Siller said a resident had offered to purchase a commercial freezer for the Town, if that would better position it to make the case for local vaccine distribution. The vaccines currently in use in New York State require deep cold storage. But Island officials concluded in consultation with local doctors, “the intention was great, but the reality is it wouldn’t carry any weight,” Siller said. “It wouldn’t really help at all.”
The same resident, after being thanked for the offer, put the supervisor in touch with a contact at the office of U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer. In a call with the office on Wednesday, staffers there said, “they will do as much as they can to help us,” Siller said.
He also asked if the senator could “drop a note” on behalf of the community with state officials. The Town was investigating whether Shelter Island, with its outsize population of elderly residents, could qualify for special attention under New York’s vaccine equity program designed to “ensure vulnerable and underserved communities are not left behind.”
“The concern is not so much physically getting off [the Island] to get the vaccine, but getting off — period. The people are nervous and don’t want to. They’d prefer if we could do everything here,” he said.
According to the official state tally, Shelter Island has by far the lowest rate of infection of any of the 10 towns in Suffolk County.
Max vaccination approach
Deputy Supervisor Amber Brach-Wiliams said the state is focused on “max vaccination. So they are going for the biggest rollout. The most shots in arms. So it doesn’t put us in the best situation because we are a small community.”
She encouraged Islanders to visit the Town website for the most up to date information on county and state vaccination efforts.
Also, anyone age 65+ is welcome to contact the Senior Services Office to have their name added to a list of potential vaccination recipients should the Town be able to host a COVID-19 vaccine program, along the lines of its very popular flu/shingles/pneumonia vaccination program. Contact sara.mundy@shelterislandtown.us or call 631-749-1059.
Currently, Brach-Williams said, about 200 residents have expressed interest. It is not clear whether the Town could limit COVID-19 vaccines to its own residents, or would have to open such a program to off-Islanders.
Other business
The Town Board also heard from Councilman Mike Bebon, who reported on behalf of the Green Options Committee about Community Choice Aggregation. It’s a concept new to Long Island that enables municipalities to choose their source of energy, with the aim to reduce energy costs, commit to supporting only renewable energy sources, and/or gain other local controls over energy decisions. Read our coverage in this Gazette post.
Councilman Jim Colligan updated the board on the Peconic Estuary Partnership’s 10-year financial plan. Shelter Island is one of six Suffolk County towns involved in PEP and is the only Town that falls entirely within the organization’s area of focus.
Specifically, PEP is investigating ways to increase funding to help us ensure a strong future and expand its ability to carry out goals, Colligan said. PEP leadership is also contemplating a stronger association with Stony Brook University, Colligan reported.
You can watch the entire meeting on Channel 22, the Town’s public access station, or on TownHallStreams.com.
