DEWITT, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — Starting Monday, Onondaga County residents can get vaccinated drive-thru style, as two new sites are opening up.
One site will be run by Wegmans and Driver’s Village in Cicero, inside the driver’s express location. That one will run Monday only, with more dates to come in the future. The other will take place on Monday and Tuesday in the back parking lot at Shoppingtown Mall, near the old Macy’s building.
The property is now owned by the county after a tax settlement in December. And they’re putting it to good use on both Monday and Tuesday, hoping to vaccinate 1,200 people each day.
Those who have pre-registered will pull up, get their shots, wait for 15 minutes to make sure there’s no allergic reaction, and drive away.
County Executive Ryan McMahon said this is coming after concerns from people who don’t feel comfortable going indoors to get their shots. This way, he hopes to reach more people. That’s been a common theme for McMahon, who says it’s getting harder to fill vaccination appointments without eligibility expanding. Though public-facing employees became eligible last week, he says they’re pretty much done getting vaccinated.
“The demand is different in each community. It’s not the same throughout New York State. And so that’s why traditionally, counties run these vaccination processes,” McMahon said.
To make sure no doses go to waste, the county opened up a waiting list for anyone 50-59 years old. Until eligibility expands to those people, if there’s a case where there are leftover doses from a clinic, they will pull from this list.
