Darien To Move Coronavirus Testing Site Away From High School

DARIEN, CT — Town officials are looking to move the current coronavirus (COVID-19) testing site at Darien High School to another location, according to First Selectman Jayme Stevenson.

Darien was one of the early communities in the state to offer coronavirus testing to residents, and has tested dozens of people.

In addition to moving the effort away from the high school, the town also plans to reduce the number of testing days from two per week to one per week. Stevenson told Patch that she hopes a new location is up and running by the week of July 6.

"The goal is to have a seamless timing transition from the DHS site to the new site," Stevenson said. "We are also exploring the ability to offer antibody testing as well as virus testing. If a new site cannot be negotiated, we will stay at DHS for virus testing."

Like other communities in Connecticut, Darien has seen its coronavirus caseload taper off significantly, in large part to residents' adherence to stay-at-home orders and wearing masks.

As of Wednesday, the town had experienced five coronavirus-related deaths, and had a total of 205 confirmed cases, according to state health officials, with no new cases in town over the past few days.

Darien has slowly eased restrictions over the past few weeks in accordance with Gov. Ned Lamont's phased-in reopening efforts. Connecticut is considered to be one of four states that is set up to successfully contain the virus.

"I am cautiously optimistic about how well the reopenings are going in relation to virus transmissions," Stevenson said. "Our residents are generally doing a very good job of being respectful of the rules to wear face coverings and distance themselves appropriately from non-household members. It's important to maintain this diligence as we move through all phases of reopening our local economy."

Having said that, Stevenson added that where she is seeing a little resistance is among younger residents, whom she urges to stay the course.

"I would offer a word of caution to gatherings of younger folks which continue to be a problem in both public and private settings," Stevenson told Patch. "High schoolers and college students must understand that these health guidelines apply to all persons no matter their age."