Stay Informed – Working Together During COVID-19 – City of Benton

Latest COVID-19 Information and Resources – Sunday, March 29, 2020

The Benton City Hall will stay in step with Governor Pritzker’s stay at home order by remaining closed to the public until April 7th.

At the start of major closures across the country, as a result of COVID-19, the City initially chose to close to the public until March 31st, 2020. During the closure, City personnel performed regular duties at City Hall and within each department. The same rule applies during the continuing closure to the public until the April 7th date.

As a reminder to our water and/or sewer customers, we accept payments online at: Bentonil.com, at all local banks except First Financial, or in our dropbox outside City Hall. If you have any questions about your water bill or need to speak with someone about arrangements, you should call our Water Department at 618-439-6131. You can also reach our other departments housed in City Hall at this number.

As we all practice social distancing, only shopping for essentials, and stay at home good practice, we would like to thank those of you who are essential workers – including those who work for the City. We would also like to thank our small businesses in town, who are part of the foundation of our community, but tend to be effected the most during these times. Thank you to our educators, who miss their students, and continue to work on teaching plans for online coursework. We would like to thank those of you who are first responders, emergency management, those working in our senior living facilities, and those of you in the medical field who are performing tests, taking care of our loved ones and preparing for what may lie ahead.

We cannot fail to mention the countless number of residents ordering curbside service from our favorite local restaurants, helping prepare school lunches or organizing fun ideas across town to help bring some positivity to this situation.There’s really an endless list of people within our community who are working together, even if from a distance, to make sure we continue to function the best we can during these circumstances. Thank you ALL for your kind spirits and cooperation with one another.

Additional Informational Resources

State of Illinois – Coronavirus Response Website

FAQs About the Stay At Home Order

Latest Executive Orders Related to COVID-19 – Executive Order Number 10
STAY AT HOME – All individuals must stay at home, with exception for essential activities, essential government functions, and essential businesses and operations. All non-essential business and operations must cease, aside from Minimum Basic Operations. Business can continue with employees working from home. Local government units across the state must halt all evictions, and gatherings of more than 10 people are prohibited. Click the link below
Executive Order Numbers 20-10
IL State Press Release Detailing the Statewide Stay At Home Order

The Benton District 47 website it a great resource for those of us who have children attending the Benton K-8 schools, including information about lunch pickups, learning opportunities and school closure information. You can find their website by clicking the following link: Benton School District 47
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Thursday, March 19, 2020

According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, our immediate area still does not have a confirmed case of COVID19. But as closures continue, further precautionary measures are taken and more information comes in, the City of Benton takes its role as a primary source of information and public health and services very seriously. We consider this responsibility our top priority, and promise our best efforts to make easily accessible all educational and public service information as we receive it.

The City of Benton is also acting as proactively as possible to keep our residents informed of any updates regarding COVID-19, how it might effect our friends, family and services, what we’re doing for precautionary measures, and the most up-to-date information coming from the federal, state and health departments.

Below you’ll find a current list of press releases issued by the City or any of our departments. We’re also including links to resources so you can educate yourself on the virus and the best precautionary measures you can take to help prevent the spread of the virus. Additional resources will be added as they become available. If you have any questions or concerns about City services or resources available in our area, please contact us at 618-439-6131 ext. 407, and we will do our best to give you an answer or put you in the right direction. Additionally, if you have information you believe would be helpful to your fellow residents or business owners, please feel free to call the same number to relay the information.

We appreciate everyone working together as a community, using kindness, understanding and necessary precautions, to make sure we’re doing all we can to prevent and/or minimize the scope of COVID-19. Thank you!