Lynchburg opens mass vaccination site for essential workers
Lacking supply, it could be weeks before the location is open to the public
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LYNCHBURG, Va. – Lynchburg city and health leaders have transformed the former T.J. Maxx store in the Candler’s Station Shopping Center into a mass vaccination site.
“Our goal is to get vaccines into as many people who want them, as quickly and as efficiently as possible,” said Fire Chief Greg Wormser.
The fire department partnered with Lynchburg City School nurses Monday to distribute vaccines to nearly 450 essential workers who fall in Phase 1b.
“This is going to be able to bring our students, hopefully, back full-time once we’re able to get COVID under control. So, this is one of the first steps in being able to do that,” said Lynchburg City Schools nurse coordinator Andrea Bryant.
With some local CVS pharmacies now offering COVID-19 vaccinations, people in Central Virginia will have more opportunities to get a dose amid short supply and systems that have proven frustrating for many wanting to be immunized.
The Central Virginia Health District, made up of Lynchburg and the surrounding counties, started offering vaccines to people 65 years old and older, certain essential workers and adults with certain underlying conditions three weeks ago when it entered Phase 1b of vaccination rollout.
At the time, health officials said they were expecting to receive about 3,050 doses from the state per week based on the districtâs population until about the end of February. With more than 50,000 people in the district aged 65 and older and still more qualifying as essential workers, thereâs been a heavy imbalance in demand, and officials conducting vaccine clinics and planning for large-scale future rollout have consistently urged patience.
Lynchburg taxpayers will not be on the hook for the regionâs new mass vaccination center after Liberty University agreed to rent a vacant building to the city at no cost, according to a lease agreement obtained by The News & Advance.
City officials are putting the final touches on the nearly 20,000-square-foot center at Candlers Station, which is expected to serve up to 6,000 people a day once vaccination supply ramps up.
âWe hope this convenient location in Candlerâs Station Shopping Center serves our neighbors well during these vaccination efforts,â Jerry Prevo, Libertyâs acting president, said in an emailed statement. âGod is our refuge and strength, so we pray He continues to bring healing from this pandemic to our region, our nation, and the world.â
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Lynchburg has announced the location of a mass vaccination site thatâll be able to accommodate regional COVID-19 immunization on a large scale once supply chains open up.
The city said Friday it has entered into a lease agreement with Liberty University for a Candlers Station retail space that formerly housed a T. J. Maxx, at 3700 Candlers Mountain Road.
City officials said late last month that they had secured such a site but declined to discuss the specifics. They assured the location would have ample space and parking and would be accessible by public transit.
Lynchburg-area health officials said last month that they expect the Central Virginia Health District, made up of Lynchburg and the surrounding counties, will be receiving about 3,050 doses of COVID-19 vaccines per week for most of February. Thatâs based on supply of the vaccine distributed to Virginia, then further disseminated to health districts based on population.