Boulder County has extended its public health order requiring face coverings in public indefinitely. Every person over 12 years old must wear a face covering whenever in public anywhere in Boulder County that social distancing of six feet cannot be maintained.
“While the Order does not require children under age 12 to wear a mask, it is expected that parents will encourage and supervise their use for their children older than three years old,” county officials stated.
— CBSN Denver, June 29, 2020
The Pagosa Springs Town Council will hold a special meeting tonight, Tuesday, June 30, to address a single agenda item:
NEW BUSINESS
1. Discussion and Possible Action to Require Face Coverings in Public
You can download the 18-page Council packet for the meeting here. The packet includes related information, plus a possible resolution — Resolution 2020-18 — that would define the Face Covering requirements this way:
All persons shall be required to wear a Face Covering when entering, waiting in line to enter and while in the following locations within the Town of Pagosa Springs:
a. Any place of business engaged in any sales or other transactions of any kind to the general public and any place that offers services, facilities, privileges, or advantages to the general public, including any outside courtyard, patio, seating, waiting or parking area associated with the place of business or place of service in which any kind of delivery, pick up or other service is provided;
b. Any Town-owned or operated building or indoor facility of any kind;
c. Any public transportation while operating within the Town limits, including transit buses and bus shelters;
d. Any other public place whether indoor or outdoor where persons are unable to maintain safe social distancing (six or more feet separation) from others who are not residents of their own household…
… and would define “Enforcement” this way:
The Town will attempt to seek voluntary compliance through education and warning notices prior to the issuance of any citations. Compliance with this Order may be enforced under Chapter 12 of the Municipal Code. In addition, the Town may pursue suspension or revocation of a business license under Chapter 6, Article 1 of the Municipal Code, or it may pursue any other legal remedy to secure enforcement.
Chapter 12 of the Municipal Code (MC) says nothing at all about how a Face Covering rule should be enforced, so we’re not sure how, exactly, the Town might utilize that section of the MC. In the same vein, Chapter 6, Article 1 of the MC does not specifically authorize the Town to revoke a business license for violations related to Face Coverings. Would the Town truly put a local business “out of business” over a violation? Would they put — for example — Walmart out of business? Or would they enforce their new rules only on small mom-and-pop businesses?
The Town’s Home Rule Charter specifies that “every action creating an indebtedness, authorizing the borrowing of money, levying a tax, establishing any rule or regulation for the violation of which a penalty is imposed… shall be by ordinance.” (HRC Section 3.7) We note that the Resolution provided to the Council for tonight’s meeting is not an ordinance, which would require two public readings before it could become law.
The staff brief includes these comments:
To date, the Governor’s executive orders and CDPHE Public Health Orders have required employees in certain industries to wear medical or non-medical face coverings. There is no statewide mandate at this time that requires customers in businesses or the general public to wear face coverings in public. Some communities have considered the issue and instituted local ordinances/orders to require them. In southwest Colorado, the only community that has instituted a local order is the City of Durango, which requires them within city limits. The Town of Bayfield Board of Trustees considered the issue but decided not to institute a local requirement. The Town of Bayfield conducted a survey and 74% of respondents who live or work in the Bayfield zip code did not support a local policy requiring masks.
To my knowledge, the Pagosa Springs Town Council has not conducted a survey of any kind. But one member of the public did weigh in during the Council’s June 25 special meeting, encouraging the Council to consider a mandatory Face Covering policy or rule, now that we are seeing a large number of tourist in town. Council member Nicole DeMarco reacted to that citizen comment a bit later in the same meeting.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about this face mask issue. I’ve talked to a bunch of people recently, and I was in Durango earlier today and… everyone in the Main Street area was wearing them. And I’ve talked to some younger people in our community about that, about Durango, and they were saying it’s kind of nice, for them, that it’s just ‘across the board’ — this is what you do.
“It was an interesting perspective, you know. Like, you’re not sure what the right protocol is [in Archuleta County] …
“I think, as a community… we’ve been really lucky, that we haven’t had much of an outbreak. But now we’re seeing this huge influx of people coming from places that are not in that situation. I think it’s a really reasonable request of visitors, to wear masks, in order to protect our community.
“So, I know this is contentious. It’s really become a politicized issue all over the country, but I would like for the Council to have a discussion.”
Apparently, we will have that discussion, tonight at 5pm, via ZOOM.
REMOTE PARTICIPATION
Join Zoom Meeting By Computer – https://zoom.us/j/97111530284
Dial by Phone – 1-669-900-6833 US – Meeting ID: 971 1153 0284
If you haven’t used ZOOM before, be sure to install the app prior to the beginning of the meeting.