News Flash

Mayor Allen Joines is allowing the mask requirement for city buildings and facilities to expire at the end of today. Also expiring is Joines’ order restricting in-person access to city buildings only to those with appointments. However, Joines is keeping in place his State of Emergency declaration.

“Although our case numbers and positive test rate are low,” Joines said, “I believe it is prudent to keep the state of emergency in place for the time being in case we see another spike in cases.”

The mask requirement for public transportation, including WSTA buses and the Clark Campbell Transportation Center, will remain in effect at least through April 18. On March 10 the Transportation Security Administration announced that its mask requirement, which had been set to expire March 18, would be extended another month.

Joines lifted his city-wide mask mandate Feb. 28 as part of the 13th amendment to the State of Emergency declaration he initially issued March 13, 2020. That amendment announced that the mask requirement and appointment restrictions for city buildings would remain in effect through March 31. In allowing that ending date to remain in place, the restrictions for city buildings simply expire without requiring a further amendment to the emergency declaration.

City employees may choose to continue wearing a mask for their own safety. “I would ask that our citizens cooperate in these instances by wearing a mask if they are asked to do so by one of our employees,” Joines said. 

Businesses, churches and other organizations remain free to make their own requirements as to masks or other COVID-related measures.

While the State of Emergency remains in place, city boards and commissions may continue to meet online instead of in person. To fulfill the requirements of the state’s open meetings law, all online meetings of boards and commission livestream on the city’s YouTube channel so that citizens may monitor their proceedings.