South Milwaukee/St. Francis Health Department – Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update
The South Milwaukee/St. Francis Health Department is leading our efforts in response to Coronavirus (COVID-19).  Here is the updated information on the pandemic:


Milwaukee County COVID-19 Dashboard and Tracking Map
Wisconsin Department of Health Services News, Updates, and Resources
CDC News, Updates and Resources | What to do if You Are Sick

We are doing all we can as a city to communicate clear, concise, accurate, and consistent information on the pandemic. Check back to this site for regular updates, visit the city’s Facebook page, and sign up for our SM Works app. We will be using SM Works to share information on our response to COVID-19 via email to interested individuals. To join the email list, please sign up for the service and/or app, and submit your email address.

Sign Up for AlertSense Phone and Text Alerts 
We have begun using the AlertSense platform to communicate to residents via phone and text.  We have an updated list of landline phones in the system.  Importantly, if you have not added your mobile phone to our phone list, please do ASAP.  Sign up here, and ask others to do so, too.  You can also sign up for text alerts. 

South Milwaukee Orders and Announcements 
State of Emergency | Prohibiting Dining-in at Restaurants and Bars | Closing of Grobschmidt Senior Center | Closing of South Milwaukee Public Library | South Milwaukee/St. Francis Health Department Reports Positive Case of COVID-19 | Class “B” Extension for Restaurants and Bars | Closing of Playgrounds

Election Update: Vote Absentee by Mail for the April 7th Election 
We are strongly encouraging our residents to vote absentee by mail. To request a ballot, visit MyVote, or request one by emailing the elections@smwi.org mailbox.  You will need to upload your photo ID or provide a photocopy of it.  In-person absentee voting is open at City Hall, but please be aware we will be practicing social distancing during the early absentee voting process and on Election Day.  The methods being practiced are intended to protect the health and well-being of all involved and, as a result, expect that the process to vote will be more time consuming than usual.  Here is a sample ballot. 

Self-Deposit Station: Open 
The Self-Deposit Station is open, but employees are practicing social distances, including temporarily suspending the $3 per-trip user fee.  Summer hours are now in effect: Open Tuesday and Friday – 11:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.; and Saturday – 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.  Closed Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. 
• Please note: wait times may be long at times.  Please be patient; as we limit the number of cars in the yard to ensure safe social distances. 

Donations Appreciated: Medical and Cleaning Supplies
We want to thank local retailers like Walmart, Pick ‘n Save, Ace Hardware, ALDI and Mara’s Sewing House for assisting the city in obtaining supplies that are critical to assure continuity in essential city operations. Want to help? We are accepting donations of new and unused medical exam gloves, simple/dust masks, N95 respirator masks, disinfecting cleaning supplies (Lysol spray, disinfecting wipes, etc.) and containers of unopened hand sanitizer, which we’ll put to use in coming weeks as we continue to operate many city functions amid the pandemic. You can donate these items by arranging for drop off at the SMFD by emailing donations@smwi.org.

Community Resources

Meals for Kids and Seniors 
The School District of South Milwaukee’s School Nutrition Services Department will be providing “grab and go” lunches along with an additional breakfast offering that is shelf stable for the following morning for all students.  This option is only for children in South Milwaukee.  For more information on the meal program, click here. 

Although the Grobschmidt Senior Center is closes, drive-thru meals are still being served to seniors 60 and older.  To get meals, fill out a Senior Dining Registration form — available on the Milwaukee County Department of Aging website, or at the center, during pickup times — and bring it to the center prior to picking up your first lunch, or email it to quinlan@smwi.org.  Meals are distributed in the back parking lot from 11 a.m. to noon.  Reservations must be made by 11 a.m. the previous day at 414-768-5722.  Monday reservations should be called in on Friday.

Support for Local Businesses 
The impacts of COVID-19 have touched all of us, illness or not. At the top of that list are small, independent businesses, especially bars and restaurants. They need our help, and it’s time for us to step up and help them. Check out a new web page devoted to sharing information on local businesses, focused on bars and restaurants here. Also visit the Shop Local South Milwaukee Facebook page, which has updates from other local business Facebook pages throughout the day.

Resources for Small Business Owners 
To our local business owners: your hard work isn’t lost on us, and we fully understand the impact the pandemic is having on many of you.  If you’re seeking help, please visit the links below.  We will post more resources as they become available.

• City of South Milwaukee: Support for Small Businesses
• League of Wisconsin Municipalities: Resources and Information
• Wisconsin Economic Development Corp: Guide for communities and small busniesses during COVID-19
• Small Business Administration: Loan Resources and Lender Match
• Facebook: Grant program information

Parks and Transit
See how Milwaukee County Parks and the Milwaukee County Transit System are addressing the pandemic.

Federal Government 
Congresswomen Gwen Moore is providing information and other resources related to the pandemic, including guidance on the federal stimulus bill.  Check back for regular updates.

Additional Messages from South Milwaukee Mayor Erik Brooks

• March 29:  A Community Coming Together in a Crisis

• March 27: Supporting Small Business Through This Crisis: Promotion, Sign Making, Legislation,
Resource Sharing, and Shopping Local

• March 24: Delivering City Services Amid a “Safer at Home” Order

• March 23: Reflecting on my, on our, team