San Mateo County Health Officer Issues Shelter In Place Order 

• Shelter in place at home, leaving only for essential work, medical care (preferably access medical care through phone or online services), groceries and pharmacy 
• All unauthorized visitors and non-essential personnel are barred from visiting licensed skilled nursing facilities
• Effective Monday, March 16, all schools are required to dismiss students from regular attendance. Visit the San Mateo County Office of Education website for public school information.
• Effective March 15, public gatherings of 50 or more people are prohibited and gatherings of fewer than 50 are allowed only if hosts or sponsors implement all of the COVID-19 risk mitigation measures required by San Mateo County Health.

What this Means for the City of San Mateo

The City Council will vote to proclaim a local emergency at the Monday, March 16 meeting. The emergency proclamation gives the City flexibility to mobilize resources and help ensure critical services can continue. Additionally, it allows the City to request mutual aid from regional, State and other governmental entities. The City has also opened its Emergency Operations Center and is continuing to coordinate closely with our partners at the County, San Mateo Consolidated Fire Department and neighboring agencies.

Our community’s health and well-being are our top priorities, and we will continue to provide updates as they become available. Visit www.cityofsanmateo.org/coronavirus for updates on City-specific services.

Changes to City Services, Facility Closures

To protect the health of our staff and residents, the City is taking extensive steps to reduce the spread of the virus. In compliance with the County Health Officer’s order to Shelter-in-Place, effective on March 17 through April 7, the City of San Mateo will only be providing essential services including public safety, wastewater treatment, and critical infrastructure maintenance. We have also closed City facilities to the public including libraries, community centers and City Hall. All events have been cancelled through April 7.

Staff in non-essential functions will be working remotely to the extent possible and checking email, but please expect some delay in responses. Questions about the coronavirus or the County Health Officer’s Order should be directed to the County’s 2-1-1 Call Center. For questions about City Services, please call the City’s main line at (650) 522-7000.

Please see the list below for further details about what services and programs are impacted.

The public should be prepared for further changes, included extended closures of services and businesses, as more information becomes available from public health officials and as directed by state and federal leadership. 

(List as of March 16, 2020)

Library:

• Public libraries are closed and services suspended through April 7. All programs, events and meeting room reservations have been cancelled.

• Checked out library items should be kept by patrons and not returned during the closure. We will automatically extend checkout times for borrowed items and no one will be fined during this closure.

Parks and Recreation:

• All registered and drop-in recreation programs, special events and activities are suspended until further notice.
• The Senior Center and community centers at Beresford, Martin Luther King Jr., Shoreview and Lakeshore are closed until April 7. Poplar Creek Golf Course and the Japanese Garden at Central Park are also closed. Private facility rentals have been cancelled.
• Senior Lunches will be available for pick up at King and the Senior Centers between the hours of 12:15 pm and 1:15 pm on their normal day of operations, T-TH at King Center and M-W-F at the Senior Center however pre-registration is required. Please call 650-522-7490 to reserve your lunch.
• The Mobile Rec Van and Police Activities League (PAL) activities are suspended.
• Youth sports leagues, including San Mateo Little League National, San Mateo Little League American, San Mateo Youth Softball Association and AYSO are suspended.
• All outdoor picnic reservations and miscellaneous field reservations through April 7 are cancelled.
• The Senior Get Around Transportation Program provided through Serra Cabs will continue uninterrupted.

Police Services:

• The Police Department will be increasing patrols and the number of officers on the street to help maintain order and public safety.
• The Police Department will be closed to public access. Walk-up needs will be assessed on a case-by-case basis via the vestibule phone at the front of the police department building.
• The non-emergency phone number is (650) 522-7700. For emergencies, continue to call 9-1-1. We encourage the public to reduce non-critical calls to police, and remember you can file many police reports online.

City Hall Services:

• City Hall will be closed to the public. Staff will be available to answer questions from the public by phone or email. For general information, please call (650) 522-7000 or email  webmaster@cityofsanmateo.org.
• Business Tax - applications are available online and staff will respond to voicemails left on the main line.
• The Public Works Department will continue to provide road construction, inspections, wastewater collection/treatment services, and limited public infrastructure maintenance. Staff will be available for general and project-specific questions over the phone (650) 522-7300 and via email publicworks@cityofsanmateo.org.
  • Street cleaning services will pause temporarily. 
  • Pending Encroachment Permit applications will proceed in a limited capacity via email, however, no new permits or in-person applications will be processed until further notice. pwencroachment@cityofsanmateo.org. 
  • For any maintenance concerns outside of office hours, residents should call 650-522-7350.
• Community Development Department Planning, Building, Code Enforcement and Housing Services staff will be available for telephone and email inquiries. Contact information for each service is available online.
  • Building inspections only for critical life/safety situations, as determined by the Building Official – scheduled by telephone only (650) 522-7172 
  • Planning Division – there will be limited internal plan processing of pending planning and building permit applications – no in-person activities. No new Planning applications will accepted during this period. (650) 522-7212 or  planning@cityofsanmateo.org 
  • Code Enforcement Division – will only handle critical life/safety situations as determined by the CDD director. (650) 522-7150 or codeenforcement@cityofsanmateo.org 
  • Housing and Neighborhood Improvement Division (650) 522-7220 or housing@cityofsanmateo.org

Public Meetings:

We record, live-stream and broadcast our City Council, Planning Commission and Sustainability & Infrastructure Commission meetings.
You can always watch these meetings remotely on our Public Meeting Portal; our YouTube Channel, or local stations: Comcast/channel 27, Astound/channel 26, or AT&T/channel 99.

In an effort to reduce the risk of spread of infectious disease, the City is implementing a number of precautionary measures as recommended by the CDC and County Health Office. This includes exercising social distancing at City Council and Commission meetings. Audience seats will be taped off at least six feet apart for attendees that wish to attend meetings in person.  In addition, at-risk populations are advised to not attend in person.  The City has published a Special Notice provide guidance on attending the meeting.  

Want to comment on an agenda item?
You can email your comments on upcoming public meetings to the following:

• City Council meetings: clerk@cityofsanmateo.org
• Planning Commission meetings: planningcommission@cityofsanmateo.org
• Sustainability and Infrastructure Commission meetings: sandicommission@cityofsanmateo.org

Access City Services from Home:

Actions You Can Take 

Health officials advise us to reduce the risk of getting sick by taking simple, preventative measures that are used to reduce impacts of seasonal colds or flu viruses, including:  

• Washing hands regularly with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60 percent alcohol
• Avoid shaking hands or touching your eyes, nose and mouth
• Cover your cough or sneeze properly
• Stay home and avoid public or crowded areas if you don’t feel well 
• Get your flu shot to protect against flu or symptoms similar to COVID-19 
• If you have recently returned from regions with ongoing COVID-19 impacts, monitor your health and immediately call your physician if you experience flu-like symptom

You can also prepare for the possible disruption caused by an outbreak:  

• Make sure you have a supply of all essential medications for your family 
• Make a child care plan for if you or a caregiver are sick
• Make arrangements for how your family will manage a school closure, if necessary
• Make a plan for how you can care for a sick family member without getting sick yourself

Stay Informed with Accurate Information

Call 2-1-1 for Non-Medical Information 
The County of San Mateo has replaced a local call center number with a new service available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Residents with non-medical questions should call 2-1-1 for information about the coronavirus. 2-1-1 is a confidential service accessible in 180 languages. Callers can get answers to questions about how residents, schools and businesses should prepare for COVID-19, as well as ways to prevent the spread of the virus.

Please do not call 9-1-1 for information about the COVID-19.

The 2-1-1 information service also offers a text option. Text “coronavirus” to “211211” to receive useful information from the CDC. After receiving a return text message, residents can enter a ZIP code for county-specific health-related links.

For the latest information on the outbreak, please visit
San Mateo County Health, smchealth.org/coronavirus

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cdc.gov/coronavirus