KINGSTON – Where the Geek Squad once repaired and applied anti-virus treatments to computers at a former Best Buy store in the Town of Ulster, EMTs now wait for any adverse reactions to the Pfizer vaccine for the Covid-19 virus.
“We’ve had several pods open,” said Dan Proctor, Ulster County’s vaccination manager, “but they have never been that big.”
The former electronics store had lines that never formed when they sold cellphones and TVs, but the pandemic has changed priorities. At 25,000 sq. ft., this site known as a pod, offers plenty of parking, bus drop-off points, ADA compliance, and it’s twice as big as other vaccination sites in Ulster County.
“It’s just totally accessible,” he said. “Instead of 1,170 – 1,200 per day, we can do 3,000 plus in here a day.”
Proctor is also the site manager here, which is offering the first shot of the vaccine. And when the state opens the Ulster County Fairgrounds Friday as a site, he said county residents will continue to be better served to get the vaccine.
“I think it takes some pressure off of us,” he said. “But the big thing is that it will accommodate a bigger slice of society.”
Proctor said the former Best Buy site will be open as long as the state provides the vaccine.
Scott Ross, a volunteer who lives Shokan, received his first shot a couple of weeks ago at Kingston High School. Thursday, Ross was helping to keep the lines moving smoothly at the former electronics store.
“As soon I got the shot, I felt 10 pounds lighter mentally,” he said. “I know it’s not over, whatever, but it is a first step.”
