Members of the Knox County Board of Health will order 50,000 pairs of protective solar eclipse glasses to sell to the community ahead of the April 8, 2024, event.
County health officer Dr. Alan Stewart on Wednesday during the board’s regular meeting, held at their new space inside the Bierhaus Building, 328 N. Second St., said during a recent meeting of a new Solar Eclipse planning committee, he was asked if the board would consider buying the safety glasses in bulk for distribution to the community.
Upon some research, he told the board they could purchase 50,000 pairs for $17,000.
Those would then be sold to members of the community, Stewart said, offering the health department an opportunity to recoup its funds, if not make a little money, too.
The glasses would also feature the health department’s logo, new address, etc.
“So they would be the official commemorative solar eclipse glasses,” he told the board.
“My opinion is that it could turn into a good deal for us,” he said. “We would certainly get our money back, and it would create a bit of buzz for the health department.”
The board unanimously agreed to the purchase, and while many details remain uncertain, board president Tanner Bouchie expressed a desire to take some of those 50,000 pairs and ensure that every school-aged child receives one.
Janice Barniak, director of the Vincennes/Knox County Visitors & Tourism Bureau, went before health board members last month seeking their help in the formation of a Health and Sanitation sub-committee.
There will be potential issues of exposure, sanitation, etc. Someone, she said, needs to help the planning committee set standards for things like portable toilet use and food vendors.
Some programs already exist — such as the inspection and permitting of food trucks — but they will need to be expanded and modified to fit the enlarged demand.
Too, Barniak sought their help in setting standards in terms of parking and camping allowed on private property, seeing as how many locals may seek to monetize on the number of people visiting Vincennes.
There will also need to be first aid tents set up around the county, specifically near festivals and events currently in the planning stages.
Purchasing the glasses, however, is the first official action taken by the board associated with the 2024 Solar Eclipse.
Vincennes will be on the path of totality, and with the longest darkness in the state at just over four minutes — happening at precisely 3:02 p.m.
Locals are expecting thousands, looking to Hopkinsville, Kentucky, which was on the path of totality in 2017 and drew upwards of 150,000 people.
In other business Wednesday, health board members finalized a date for an open house and private luncheon to celebrate their move to a larger space.
The board last month agreed to hire local interior designer and event planner Greg Risley to plan a huge soiree, setting aside upwards of $20,000.
Being among the first in the state to begin expanding programming, and moving into a larger space to do so, health officials were hopeful to entice Dr. Kristina Box, state health commissioner, possibly the governor, too.
Already, Risley told the board this week, Dr. Box is confirmed to attend the estimated 250-person luncheon, so the date has officially been set for May 31 at the Great Bankquet Hall.
The open house will be open to the public; private invitations will go out for the luncheon to follow.
Risley told the board that he’s finalized many of the details already; he just needs to work with Stewart to finalize the guest list.
The new facility — one double the size of their last space on South Fifth Street — officially opened for business in January.
Health department officials months ago, as the pandemic began to wane, began talks of finding a larger space, eventually setting their eyes on the Bierhaus Building, only recently purchased by Good Samaritan.
The health department has, over the last year, turned its eye toward improving public health, the gaps in which were made painfully clear during the pandemic.
Too, it has received nearly $200,000 so far in state grants aimed at bolstering public health. Expansion efforts include broadened lead testing for youngsters, child immunization clinics in partnership with local schools and even more thorough on-site STD testing.
Health officials made application for — and received — up to $289,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds to help pay for renovations to the space and furnishings.
The health board also this week implemented a system to streamline complaints made by the public.
Currently, officials say, complaints aren’t catalogued, details not recorded, so in an effort to better — and more timely and efficiently — handle complaints, they will begin asking locals to fill out a form, one approved by board members Wednesday.
Everything will be kept confidential, but the “paper trail,” board members say, will help get the information to the appropriate department, whether that be food service, the sanitarian, health, etc., and allow for it to be followed up on, thereby ensuring that all issues are dealt with.