PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — While Aroostook County has the lowest COVID-19 rate of any county in Maine, that distinction is not saving Presque Isle from a number of coronavirus-related closings.
Shortly after the SAD 1 school district announced it was closing its schools for a week in response to three positive tests over the last two days, the city’s library and community center announced they would close as well.
Sargent Family Community Center management said around 12:45 p.m. that the center would be closed until further notice. The post said the closure was because of the SAD 1 school closures.
And around 2 p.m., The Mark and Emily Turner Memorial Library said it too would close, though library officials did not provide an explanation for why they were shutting their doors.
Wintergreen Arts Center also announced it would not be open in the next week because of the positive COVID-19 cases in SAD 1 schools. It still plans to perform arts and craft classes remotely.
A holiday caroling event at the Presque Isle Housing Authority was also canceled on Friday due to increasing COVID-19 cases in the community.
The Aroostook County Action Program said it would close its offices to the public on Thursday morning due to rising cases.
A lone bright spot was Big Cheese Pizza, which reopened on Friday after being closed since Nov. 19. Two staff members had been potentially exposed to someone who had COVID-19.
As of Thursday, there were 61 active COVID-19 cases in Aroostook County and 173 total cases. On Nov. 29, there were 14 cases in Presque Isle proper, with others in surrounding communities, according to Maine Center for Disease Control data.
