Opening Welcome & Observations – Terence Roberts, TATT Chair

    • Terence noted that people have expressed gratitude for Ten at the Top and what we’re doing to bring people together.

    COVID-19 TATT Focus – Dean Hybl & Sharon Purvis

    • Dean talked about our continued focus on information awareness through the COVID-19 repository, the UpstateVibe365 newsletter, and social media.
    • Sharon talked about the guest posts in the UpstateVibe365 newsletter—trying to get a variety of perspectives in those posts, across the upstate and different sectors.

    Upstate Entrepreneur Ecosystem – Erin Ouzts

    • The group that focuses on connecting the disconnected is working on trying to find out what people don’t know and connecting them to the resources they need.
    • Weekly virtual meetings continue; click here for information about past meetings

    Overview of Unemployment Insurance Claims – Ann Angermeier, Upstate Workforce Board

    • Ann talked through slides that she presented, elaborating on the information she gave in her guest post from this morning’s newsletter.
    • The Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) is bringing a new group of people—the self-employed and those in the gig economy—to the UWB, because they are not normally eligible for unemployment. Those people may not receive payment until late April, she said.

    The Current State of Air Travel – Scott Carr, GSP Airport

    • After a strong start in January and February where there were increases in airline travel out of GSP, March was down by 42%, and by April there were single digit passenger loads, with 20 daily departures
    • Nationally, traffic is down by 97%; future bookings down almost 100%
    • Air cargo is still doing well
    • View his presentation here

    County Updates – Brief updates from TATT partners from Across the Upstate

    Anderson: Carol Burdette, CEO, United Way of Anderson County

    • City, county, nonprofits, and other municipalities are all working well together
    • Homeless population has been provided with showering and handwashing stations
    • Rent, mortgage, and utilities assistance are a priority to keep people in their homes
    • Relationships and partnerships are key

    Cherokee: Frannie Stockwell, Executive Director, Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce

    • Both employees and employers have many unemployment questions
    • Difficulty with banks processing PPP loan applications
    • Great to see everyone in the community working together

    Greenville: Dean Adams, Director of Communications, City of Travelers Rest

    • A small business that normally makes takeout containers made cardboard (food-grade, which can be sprayed and wiped down between uses) origami masks, and the FD and PD set up a drive-through mask giveaway, giving away more than 10,000 masks in 3 days
    • Echoed the sentiments of others, that groups are working well together to support the community

    Greenwood: Heather Jones, CEO, Greenwood Partnership Alliance

    • News from Greenwood: Angelle LaBorde, President & CEO of the Greenwood Chamber of Commerce, has announced she is leaving to go to Lexington; Heather wanted to express appreciating for all of the things Angelle has done for Greenwood County
    • Regarding COVID-19, they are in the transition from response to recovery, with the Community Foundation, United Way providing human services, and on the business side, providing technical assistance to help businesses stay afloat
    • Focus on mental and behavioral health
    • Filming success stories for social media

    Laurens: Justin Benfield, COO, Prisma Health—Upstate Southern Region

    • Healthcare is not exempt from financial difficulty
    • 70% decrease in elective care, 500% increase in expenses
    • It’s the surge more than the virus itself that’s causing the impact—so preparing for the surges is key
    • Expanding virtual visits
    • What does healthcare look like after COVID-19?
    • Shout out to partners—in particular, Joey Avery of Laurens County 911 Communications

    Oconee: Morgan Holcombe, Oconee Economic Alliance

    • F3 tornado that went through Seneca did tremendous damage to the county’s largest employer, Borg Warner
    • Great community support, now dealing with tornado damage as well as COVID-19

    Pickens: Ken Roper, Acting County Administrator

    • 8:30 a.m. huddle call every day except for Easter Sunday with all county departments and utilities, municipalities, and nonprofits allows everyone to be on the same page
    • Workers who are deemed “non-essential” stay on payroll, shift to doing volunteer work for Meals on Wheels and other nonprofits

    Spartanburg: Todd Horne, VP of Business Development, Clayton Construction

    • Very proud of community collaboration
    • Chamber of Commerce and OneSpartanburg have created a “Back the Burg” campaign to give financial support to small businesses, which has already raised nearly $100,000
    • Another initiative to support restaurants is corporate catering to bring in lunches, and 25 companies have signed up so far