by Oscar Perry Abello, The Bottom Line

NEXT CITY (January 14, 2021) - If you’ve been one of 300,000 annual attendees at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival over the past decade or so, chances are you’ve heard Vance Vaucresson “barking,” — hawking his wares, in his case the famous Vaucresson Sausage. You may have been lucky enough to catch Vaucresson, also a jazz vocalist, performing the jingle he wrote about it.

And when folks take a sample, Vaucresson knows the product seals the deal just about every time. “For that little piece of sausage that might cost me ten cents, I’m making an $8 sale,” he says.

The founders of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival knew from the very beginning that food vendors had to be a part of the experience. The first vendor they invited was Vance’s father, Robert “Sonny” Vaucresson, the co-owner of Vaucresson’s Creole Cafe, the first Black-owned business on the city’s famous Bourbon Street. They were meeting at Vaucresson’s to brainstorm about the first festival, which took place in 1970.

Sonny Vaucresson sold the restaurant after nearly a decade. But, a bit of a gambler, he bought a corner building at 1800 St. Bernard Avenue, in New Orleans’ 7th Ward, and in 1983 he converted it into a sausage factory even before he had any clients. He did have a name to build from because his father, Robert Levinsky Vaucresson, had been a butcher serving the 7th Ward since 1899, getting his start as a vendor at what was then the St. Bernard Public Market.

Vaucresson Sausage would eventually come to be sold widely in local grocery stores, procured by local restaurateurs, and even served in the local public school system. The day before the business made its first direct delivery to public schools, in 1998, Sonny Vaucresson passed away, leaving the business in his son’s hands.

After Katrina wiped out the Vaucresson Sausage factory, the younger Vaucresson lost his primary source of income. When the festival resumed in 2007, he brokered a partnership with a local competitor to use their facility to produce his family’s famous sausage. Vaucresson has since expanded to other festivals, keeping the product name and reputation alive.

Meanwhile, Vaucresson has also been trying to revive the former sausage factory site. But over the past decade, Vaucresson has had one potential development partner unexpectedly die, and another broke a handshake promise to work with him on his site after working with him to advance a major affordable housing project across the street.

It took another child of the 7th Ward to finally make it happen. In December 2020, Vaucresson broke ground on the revitalization of the former Vaucresson Sausage Factory, with a plan to convert it into a sausage market and sit-down restaurant with a bar on the first floor and two permanently affordable apartments above. It won’t be a full factory because the building is too small to qualify under today’s USDA guidelines, but the current plan is to build the restaurant space around a central butcher station where Vaucresson can make sausage while he sings and talks about the history of the neighborhood. The co-developer on the project is Crescent City Community Land Trust, led by executive director Julius Kimbrough.

“I’ve been walking through this neighborhood my whole life, he’s been walking through this neighborhood his whole life. My father used to operate a pharmacy six blocks from where Vance’s father operated his meat production facility,” says Kimbrough. “They knew one another and crossed paths, but we as children never met. I knew his family name and he knew my family.”

Community Land Trusts are mostly known as a solution to produce permanently affordable housing. Most affordable housing produced across the country comes with an expiration date — after a certain point, the private developers who got a public subsidy to build units reserved for low-to-moderate income families can raise rents to market rate or sell the building, which can lead to a wave of evictions. It’s particularly feared in New Orleans because so much affordable housing was built around the same time, as the city recovered from Hurricane Katrina. Those expiration dates are already starting to come up, and it’s leading to tenants’ worst fears.

As a solution, a community land trust buys land while selling or renting the homes above to residents. Separating the land ownership from the structure on top reduces the amount of financing needed to buy a home, while also pulling the land itself out of the market, where it can fuel dangerous speculation — like what happened in the run-up to the financial crisis of 2007-2009.

There are an estimated 225 community land trusts active around the U.S., representing some 20,000 rental units and 15,000 homeownership units, according to Fannie Mae, the mortgage giant, which does finance mortgages for homeowners on community land trusts.

In addition to their real estate mechanics, community land trusts are also seen as vehicles for community power in real estate and development. It’s a standard practice for community land trust board members to include representatives of residents on the land trust, residents of the surrounding community, and trusted professionals with relevant backgrounds real estate lawyers, accountants, local developers or contractors. Some believe this governance structure can make community land trusts too slow to be successful in real estate, or challenging to work with as business partners.

There is commercial space among some other community land trusts, but it’s mostly been accidental or peripheral to the focus on housing.

Cooper Square Community Land Trust was until recently the only operating land trust in New York City. The land trust’s roots and focus have always been in residential tenant organizing and resistance to bulldozing the neighborhood in favor of Robert Moses-led Urban Renewal plans. It has 21 buildings with 328 residential units scattered across a few blocks of Manhattan’s East Village. But Manhattan is covered in mixed-use buildings, so Cooper Square Community Land Trust also happens to include 24 storefronts, whose rents generate more than a quarter of the land trust’s income.

Oakland Community Land Trust started out focusing on acquiring distressed or foreclosed homes in the wake of the financial crisis and preserving them as affordable, preferably for low- or moderate-income families who were already living in them. But over the past two years, Oakland Community Land Trust has acquired not one but two primarily commercial properties in partnership with commercial tenants at risk of being displaced by higher rents.

In Minneapolis and Pittsburgh, commercial community land trusts are emerging as part of broader efforts to revitalize historically Black commercial corridors.

Crescent City Community Land Trust has some typical residential properties in its portfolio, in the city’s Lower 9th Ward, but its pipeline of nine projects also includes The Pythian, a historic building in downtown New Orleans with 69 apartments (25 of which are permanently affordable) above a ground-floor food hall and more commercial space.

“When we talk about the CLT model to African Americans we have to be cognizant of the history of African Americans in this country,” says Kimbrough. “They’re thinking about redlining, they’re thinking about situations where African Americans have historically been deprived of the opportunity to gather capital, save capital, invest in real estate or own real estate. And that’s a very reasonable question. So we have come up with answers to those questions about why the model is applicable to African Americans and valuable to African Americans, why it’s important to create commercial spaces serving low- and moderate-income people for perpetuity in these gentrifying neighborhoods beyond affordable homeownership.”

For Crescent City Community Land Trust, protecting and advancing Black entrepreneurs and Black-owned businesses is a key component of preserving culture in New Orleans, a city that depends heavily on Black and indigenous culture to drive its main industry, tourism. The former sausage factory is just steps from the French Quarter, and despite the painful history of ramming highways through Black neighborhoods, including in this neighborhood, today there’s an offramp from the highway convenient to this location.

“We have this vision in our head of like a Coldstone Creamery for sausage where you get the story behind the food and a little show, with a little butcher station in the center of the restaurant area,” says Kimbrough. “He will be able to tout our culture while he’s talking about the product, and produce sausage the way it was historically produced at a very small scale.”

With its Black leadership and its focus beyond housing, Crescent City actually reflects the roots of the community land trust movement. The first community land trust in the country was New Communities Inc., organized by Black farmers to acquire and cultivate land near Albany, Georgia. It was about permanent economic self-determination, in addition to permanent ownership of the land.

“The community land trust model is again showing up the same way it showed up in Albany to provide Black people the opportunity to become self-sufficient, and to retain ownership of land,” says Nathaniel Smith, founder and chief equity officer of the Partnership for Southern Equity, based in Atlanta. Smith also serves on the board of Grounded Solutions, a national network of community land trusts and inclusionary housing advocates.

“We’re valuable regardless of what we own, but it is true that America was built on the idea of ownership, on land ownership,” Smith says. “You have a nation built on stolen land, cultivated by stolen labor, so to change that relationship for those same people who worked on that land to share ownership in that land in a way that is affordable, and also protected and maintained regardless of what happens to the market, is just a wonderful thing.”

Even for those relatively rare cases where Black families like Vaucresson’s have managed to hold onto land and buildings, the relative lack of liquid wealth among Black communities — meaning cash, or stocks and other investments that can be sold off easily — means that they have less “friends and family” wealth to call upon, leaving them more dependent than others on external debt to fund new businesses or major projects like revamping a 3,000-square foot former sausage factory into a restaurant with two permanently affordable apartments above.

It was the land trust that finally took the time to partner with Vaucresson and put in the resources to help put a plan together that made sense to larger funders. Vaucresson had previously come up with two possible scenarios for the former sausage factory and pitched them to the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority and the Louisiana Office of Community Development. Although both were open to funding something for the site, neither bit.

“[The redevelopment authority] was sold on it from the beginning, they were just like you gotta get your numbers right,” Vaucresson says. “The state said it fit their mission at the time, just gotta get your numbers right.”

The land trust has invested $150,000 so far to buy a share of ownership in the property, and those funds have ended up paying for architectural and other preliminary work to come up with a proposal that would pass muster — sausage-making to protect a former sausage factory. It took two years, but according to Kimbrough, the project finally got a collection of long-term, low-interest loans from NORA, the City of New Orleans and the state’s Office of Community Development, which the project is combining with Historic Preservation Tax Credits for a total of $2.1 million in development costs.

“Julius [Kimbrough] was the conduit,” says Vaucresson. “he is the true crafter, the ‘Merlin the magician’ in making this all happen.”

There was one more piece of funding needed. The NORA, city, and state loans don’t give the money up front. Borrowers have to spend the money and submit invoices, receipts and other documentation to verify the money was spent on work that actually happened. It’s meant to prevent fraud and waste. So some banks and other construction lenders have come to specialize in financing the up-front costs for projects like these.

Against the advice of many others around them, Vaucresson and Crescent City Community Land Trust insisted on getting their upfront financing from Liberty Bank and Trust, the only Black-owned bank in New Orleans. Kimbrough worked there for eleven years, eight of them post-Katrina. Liberty used to have a branch a few blocks from the site.

“My dad had done business with them since 1974, he was one of the earliest business depositors,” says Vaucresson. “Been working with them ever since. Done mortgages for us on other properties. Everybody was like don’t do it with them, don’t do it. I was like why? Because that’s just the perception of doing business with a Black bank. But I said if I’m going to have a Black business how hypocritical would I be to not give that opportunity to a Black bank.”

That said, all banks, even community banks and even Black-owned banks have a tendency to be conservative by default — there’s always a lingering fear, warranted or not, that bank regulators will view certain investments as riskier than they really might be, leading to negative consequences for the bank down the line.

“But I knew what I needed to do with them having done business with them for so long,” Vaucresson continues. “I said let’s go get some other term sheets from other people. So we got two other term sheets, from a bank and a [community development financial institution], and I presented it to them. I said look this is what’s on the table. I’m not begging you for shit. Can you match it? If you want the business you can match it or I’ma go elsewhere. And they were like no, we want to do it.”

WASHINGTON (Jan 15, 2021) – The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Incorporated (CBCF) today announced that Rep. Cedric Richmond will resign his role as board of directors chairman. He will transition from the CBCF board on January 19 in preparation to serve as senior adviser to the president and director of the White House Office of Public Engagement for President-Elect Joe Biden. Under Richmond’s leadership since 2019, the CBCF advanced its mission to develop leaders, inform public policy and educate the public by expanding its social justice, research and policy analysis initiatives, and the programming of the Leadership Institute. The CBCF also recognizes the appointment of Congressional Black Caucus member Rep. Marcia Fudge to serve as secretary of housing and urban development as part of the forthcoming Biden Administration.

“It has been one of the great honors of my life to serve as CBCF board chairman over the past year and a half,” said Rep. Richmond. “Whether it was our fellowships, scholarships, internships, or our recently improved endowment, we have put a significant down payment on the development of tomorrow's Black leaders. I am eternally grateful for the confidence bestowed on me as the board set out to navigate difficult challenges and fortify the Foundation's long-term vision and infrastructure. Together, we have set the CBCF on a path of growth and prosperity that will only see its reach expand over the coming years.”

Lori George Billingsley, vice chairwoman of the CBCF board of directors, will assume the role of chairwoman, effective January 19. Billingsley is global chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer for The Coca-Cola Company.

“The Coca-Cola Company is a long-time supporter of the CBCF, including the Annual Legislative Conference (ALC) Prayer Breakfast and Day of Healing,” said Lori George Billingsley. “I am proud to lead this dedicated and accomplished board of directors at this pivotal time in our collective history.”

“The CBCF will continue to develop opportunities to advance the global Black community,” said president and CEO Tonya Veasey. “We congratulate Rep. Fudge and thank Rep. Richmond for his dedicated service to the CBCF and we are grateful for his leadership as board chairman. Moreover, it is a pleasure to continue our tradition of impactful work with Lori George Billingsley.”

To receive updates on CBCF news, research, programs and events, subscribe to receive the e-newsletter and follow @CBCFinc on Twitter and Instagram.

NEW ORLEANS (Jan 13, 2021) — Today, the City of New Orleans announced that homeowners, renters, and business owners in Orleans Parish who experienced uninsured losses due to Hurricane Zeta may be eligible for federal disaster assistance.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) designated six parishes in Southeast Louisiana, including Orleans Parish, as eligible for Individual Assistance programs under the Major Disaster Declaration for damage and losses suffered from Hurricane Zeta between Oct. 26 and 29, 2020. The other parishes include Jefferson, Lafourche, Plaquemines, St. Bernard and Terrebonne.

Disaster assistance may include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost disaster loans to cover uninsured property losses, and other programs to help individuals and businesses recover from the effects of the disaster. FEMA is unable to duplicate insurance payments. However, those without insurance, or those who may be underinsured, may still receive help after their insurance claims have been settled.

Homeowners and renters who suffered damage from Hurricane Zeta should register with FEMA and apply for federal disaster assistance as soon as possible. The deadline to register for assistance for Hurricane Zeta is March 15, 2021.

Register with FEMA by:

You will need to have the following available when you register:

U.S. Small Business Administration Disaster Loans are also available to businesses, homeowners and renters. Loans are available:

Businesses and residents can apply online at sba.gov/funding-programs/disaster-assistance. For questions and assistance completing an application, call 800-659-2955 or email [email protected].

By Dan Grunebaum

Published: January 5th, 2021

We want to help you make educated healthcare decisions. While this post may have links to lead generation forms, this won’t influence our writing. We adhere to strict editorial standards to provide the most accurate and unbiased information.

Pandemic-shocked Americans are divided over when life might return to normal.

Asked when they see life returning to as it was before the emergence of COVID-19, the greatest number of Americans, 21%, pointed to summer 2021.

But a total of 49% selected either fall 2021 (18%), winter 2021 (11%), or 2022 or later (20%).

13% said they never expect life to return to normal, but 11% were optimistic it would return to as it was before the pandemic as soon as spring 2021.

The figures emerged from a new poll by HealthCareInsider.com surveying American perceptions on the pandemic’s end.

We asked pollees when they’d feel comfortable resuming ten specific activities of normal life.

On not wearing a mask in public, the greatest number of Americans, 23%, said they wouldn’t feel comfortable till 2022 or later.

Pluralities of respondents also targeted 2022 or later for live entertainment (19%) and travel (18%).

But on family gatherings of more than 10, the largest number of Americans, 19%, are comfortable doing so in summer 2021.

Pluralities of respondents also favored summer 2021 for drinking and dining indoors (16%), working out in a gym (10%), shopping indoors (14%), and hugging someone close (14%).

Despite the known risks posed by the ten activities, large numbers of respondents said they’re already comfortable engaging in them.

40% said they already feel comfortable shopping indoors, followed by 30% who said hugging someone close, and 26% who said they’re already comfortable drinking and dining indoors.

HealthCareInsider also asked participants which of the 10 activities they most look forward to resuming.

Not wearing a mask in public topped the list at 26% of all respondents.

Next up were family gatherings at 18%, followed by travel at 17%.

By age group, after mask wearing (20%), Millennials (18-34) are most looking forward to travel (19%).

Generation X (35-54) respondents are most eager (after not wearing a mask in public, at 25%) for travel (17%) and family gatherings (17%), while Baby Boomers (55+) are most looking forward (also after not wearing a mask in public – 31%) to family gatherings (20%).

COVID-19 has caused many Americans to put off big life events.

From a list provided, the greatest number of Americans, 53%, said they delayed holiday gatherings, followed by 51% for travel. 10% of respondents said they put off college or education, 8% having a wedding, and 6% having children.

Asked which pandemic trends are most likely to continue after the pandemic, the greatest number of Americans, 26%, said working from home.

That was followed by increased online shopping at 17% and mask wearing at 15%.

But answers varied by income level.

37% of Americans who earned $80,000 or more said working from home was the trend most likely to continue, compared to 26% of those with $40,000-$80,000 in income and just 20% of respondents with incomes under $40,000.

COVID-19 has transformed life for many people, but respondents did not think some of the most salient COVID-19-related trends would last.

Just 8% of Americans think avoiding crowds is the trend most likely to be here to stay.

Only 4% said outdoor dining was the trend most likely to continue, and just 3% thought moving to the suburbs or countryside was most likely to be a durable phenomenon.

HealthCareInsider asked poll participants how concerned they are over the possibility of a future pandemic.

60% of Americans said they are very or somewhat concerned about the possibility of another pandemic.

But concern varied by race and gender.

70% of Hispanics and 64% of Blacks are very or somewhat concerned, but only 56% of Whites shared those sentiments.

By gender, 64% of women but only 55% of men said they are somewhat or very concerned about the possibility of another pandemic.

We asked Americans to select, from a list of six possible tactics, the one they saw as the most effective measure the federal government can do to contain a future pandemic.

The greatest number, 27%, said it should establish better testing and quarantine protocols.

Requiring people to wear a mask in public followed at 17%, and closing the borders of the U.S. at 16%.

Only 12% of respondents favored lockdowns (making people stay home and closing businesses) and just 6% each felt the best tactic was to either establish mandatory contact tracing for all citizens or let state governments take charge of the decision making.

We also asked pollees what the federal government should do to help hospitals prepare for future pandemics.

Among four categories, the greatest number, 56%, said the government should maintain adequate medical supply stockpiles.

Americans next want the government to do more to research and develop treatments, vaccines, testing, and contact tracing (50%), improve coordination among public health agencies (48%), and ensure better contact tracing using technology, even at the expense of people’s privacy (27%).

10% of respondents did not think the Federal government should do anything.

HealthCareInsider also wanted to find out how the pandemic has shifted public opinion on workers and industries most involved in the response to COVID-19.

Essential workers came out on top. 68% of Americans said the pandemic made their opinion of essential workers more favorable.

That was followed by 50% for the healthcare delivery system, and 46% for teachers.

Respondents’ opinions of health insurance changed little, with 22% saying the pandemic made their opinion more favorable, and 25% saying it made their opinion of health insurance less favorable.

The government came out the worst in the survey.

Just 16% of Americans said the pandemic made their opinion of the government’s ability to handle a pandemic more favorable, with 54% of respondents saying it made their opinion of the government’s ability to do so less favorable.

HealthCareInsider.com commissioned YouGov America to conduct the survey. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov America. The total sample size was 1,411 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken December 14-15, 2020. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all U.S. adults (aged 18+). The margin of error is 2.6% plus or minus.

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NEW ORLEANS (January 6, 2021) — Due to COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations reaching a statewide record high, the City of New Orleans today announced a Modified Phase One, with reduced capacity limits and gathering restrictions, which will go into effect Friday, Jan. 8 at 6 a.m. and will last for three weeks.

“With vaccines coming but our COVID-19 numbers rising, these next few weeks will be a defining moment in the history of our response to this pandemic. That's why we need everyone in our community to take this change in COVID-19 restrictions very seriously. We are in a precarious situation, one that will not get better unless we have everyone on board,” said Mayor LaToya Cantrell. “These restrictions are for the short term, but they are in place for a reason. We must work together as a collective force to once again flatten the curve and bring our cases under control. I know we can do this, and I believe in our people to get it done.”

“Each and every measure we have been watching closely is indicating a major community outbreak in New Orleans,” said Dr. Jennifer Avegno, Director of the New Orleans Health Department. “We need everyone’s cooperation to slow the spread and save lives immediately. If you can work from home, work from home. If you have a playdate, dinner party, sleepover, barbeque, visit to a relative or other gathering scheduled, please cancel it. There is a light at the end of the tunnel with vaccines underway in Louisiana, but vaccines only work for those who are alive to receive them.”

The percent of positive tests, which was just over 5% for the last two weeks, forcing bars to close indoors, has now skyrocketed to over 10% in just one week. Average daily cases have increased exponentially from roughly 30 throughout most of the fall months to now over 200. Hospitalizations reached an all-time record yesterday statewide, with more COVID patients admitted than in April of last year. For these reasons, it is necessary to take immediate action to slow the spread of COVID-19 in all sectors.

The Modified Phase One will begin in Orleans Parish at 6 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 8, with the following major changes:

For a full list of current guidelines please visit the website here.

In addition to these further restrictions the City of New Orleans has announced the extension of the Parklet Pilot program which promotes outdoor drinking and dining options for residents as part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the start of the occupancy restrictions, the City has waived fees and expanded Outdoor Dining options for restaurants and bars.

The application fee will be waived until March 31, 2021. The City is providing water-filled barricades to parklet applicants on a first come, first served basis. Grants up to $2,000 towards parklet expenses (including heaters for these colder months) are available through a partnership between the City and NOLABA. There are currently 40 grants available.

The second round of grants began Monday, Nov. 2. The design guidelines, the permit application, and the grant information can all be found at nola.gov/parklet.

NEW ORLEANS — The City of New Orleans is proud to announce that the COVID-19 Meal Assistance Program will continue to run through January 2021. Funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has been approved through at least January 30th, bringing the program into its seventh month.

“We know that January is shaping up to be a tough month for many of our residents, with COVID-19 cases on the rise and many New Orleanians also struggling with food insecurity,” said NOHSEP Director Collin Arnold. “This unique program has supported 16,500 of our most vulnerable residents throughout the pandemic and has provided over 2 million meals to date. I’m grateful that our partnership with FEMA will allow this program to continue and to keep our residents healthy and fed through this winter surge.”

This first-of-its-kind program serves New Orleans residents impacted by COVID-19, including seniors, high-risk health individuals, residents who are COVID positive or are quarantining due to potential exposure, homeless residents, and children under 18. The meal program delivers twice-daily, restaurant-made meals to New Orleanians in need. Currently, there are over 11,100 residents enrolled in the program receiving free daily meals and there is plenty of capacity for new participants.

You may be eligible for meals if you are in any of the following categories and you are not receiving any other federal food support (including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)):

To apply, go to ready.nola.gov/meals or call 3-1-1.

To date, 85 local restaurants through the Chef’s Brigade coalition have been producing meals, which are organized and stored by the New Orleans Culinary and Hospitality Institute (NOCHI), packaged by Revolution Foods, and delivered by d’livery NOLA. Low-sodium and diabetic-friendly meals are also available and are being produced by Revolution Foods.

"Permanent closure has been a constant threat since April. Partnering with the Meal Assistance Program has saved us many times, mostly recently with the program's extension through January," states Clare Leavy, the owner and chef at Live Oak Cafe. "This program has given us more than a means to survive, it has given us a mission and we are proud and grateful to have work worth doing."

“The meal program has been an emergency financial lifeline to many in our beloved and culturally important restaurant industry, whether that's restaurants and their kitchen staff, purveyors or independent chefs,” said Chef’s Brigade founder and Executive Director Troy Gilbert.

According to a survey done by The Chefs Brigade of the participating restaurants, the meal program has re-employed at least 500 New Orleanians who may have otherwise been out of work due to the pandemic in food production alone. Additional jobs have been created in the delivery and administration components of the program. For a report on the financial impacts of the program on the restaurant industry produced by Chef’s Brigade, visit chefsbrigadenola.org.

Some of the participating restaurants include:

Restaurants that would like to join in this effort should use the form found on the Chef’s Brigade website: chefsbrigadenola.org/become-a-restaurant-partner.

Thursday, December 31, 2020

Charles "Chuck" Siler may be reached via email at [email protected]

Dana G. Smith, Published in Elemental

At the beginning of the pandemic in March, Jeffrey VanWingen, MD, a Michigan family physician, scared the bejeezus out of people and infuriated food scientists. During his 13-minute video, which went viral on YouTube and has been viewed over 26 million times, VanWingen tells people that when they come back from the grocery store, they should leave groceries outside for three days, spray disinfectant onto each product, and soak produce in soapy water. His rationale was that those items might carry the novel coronavirus and could potentially infect people after they come into contact with them.

Supporting this idea, an early study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that SARS-CoV-2 survived on various surfaces for several days, including 24 hours on cardboard and 72 hours on plastic. Public health organizations recommended hand hygiene as the first line of defense against the virus, and there were runs on Lysol wipes and hand sanitizer at supermarkets and drugstores, the supply chains for which still have not recovered.

The problem, says Emanuel Goldman, PhD, a professor of microbiology and biochemistry at Rutgers University, is that the experiments those recommendations were based on “were the wrong experiments to do” because they were not representative of how people come into contact with the novel coronavirus in the real world.

It turns out that despite the catastrophic harm it’s caused, the novel coronavirus is actually quite fragile, and it doesn’t like being out in the open where it can dry up. According to the NEJM paper, the virus’s half-life is a relatively short six hours, meaning that every six hours 50% of the virus shrivels up and becomes inactive or noninfectious. That means if you start with 100 virus particles, after six hours that number halves to 50 particles; six hours later there are 25 virus particles left, and fewer than 10 virus particles remain after 24 hours. However, if there are huge quantities of virus to start, many more will be left behind after each six-hour window, and it will take longer for all of the virus to disintegrate.

In May, the CDC updated its guidelines to state that fomites were not a major source of transmission. Instead, the agency said, the primary route of infection was probably virus-laden droplets — those snot and saliva particles that are at the root of the fomite theory. But instead of worrying about them after they land on surfaces, the bigger concern now is coming into contact with the droplets while they’re still in the air.

A study conducted in hamsters in a lab (that’s right, it turns out hamsters are the best animals in which to study coronavirus spread) found similar results in a more controlled environment. The researchers showed that the animals could infect each other not only through direct contact when they were housed in the same cage, but also when they were separated in different cages in the same room. Based on these studies and other mounting evidence, many scientists began to believe that the virus is transmitted through droplets and aerosols, those tiny mistlike particles that can travel farther through air currents and remain afloat for longer.

Despite these observations, some public health experts were initially reluctant to say that the virus is airborne, partly because they didn’t want to alarm the public. There are also debates between epidemiologists, virologists, and aerosol engineers about what the word airborne really means — whether the size of the particles or their behavior (how quickly they fall to the ground, whether they can be carried on a gust of air) matters more, and what questions must be answered before a disease can be defined as such.

By now, most scientists and public health experts agree that SARS-CoV-2 can be spread by both droplets and aerosols, particularly in close range, although no one knows which is the dominant route of transmission. “I think it’s a false dichotomy to think of this as airborne versus droplet. Most things exist on a range,” Bhadelia says.

What matters more is whether people know how to properly protect themselves from the virus. Fortunately, the prevention steps for both transmission routes are largely the same: keep your distance and wear a mask. Evidence of the importance of masks, in particular, has been mounting, not only because they trap outgoing particles from escaping, which protects others, but also because they block larger incoming particles from getting into a person’s airways, protecting the mask wearer themselves. And even if some viral particles do get through, the viral dose will still be much smaller, so the person will be less likely to get seriously ill.

A clear example of the benefits of masks is a recent outbreak in South Korea, in which one woman at a Starbucks infected 27 other customers — whom officials assume were not wearing masks because they were eating and drinking — but none of the employees, all of whom were masked the entire time.

Aerosol transmission does increase the importance of one additional protective step, which is proper ventilation and air filtration. Airflow, either introducing new air into a room or filtering the existing air, can disperse and dilute any infectious aerosol particles, reducing a person’s potential exposure. Being outdoors is the ultimate ventilation, and for months public health officials have recommended that people socialize outside rather than in. However, with winter and colder temperatures coming, indoor air filtration and adherence to masks will become even more important.

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