Athens City Council met Monday evening to discuss the possible extension of the Athens mask mandate, which is set to expire Feb. 28.
Councilwoman Sarah Grace, D-At Large, introduced an ordinance that would extend the current mask mandate to May 31. The ordinance would require masks be worn in businesses, city-operated buildings or facilities, public transportation and outdoor areas where individuals cannot social distance up to six feet.
Grace said she has been tracking local data and suggested Council wait until its next meeting to decide whether it will approve the extension. While Athens remains an area of high transmission, which is denoted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, trends suggest cases are declining, she said.
“I think trying to make a decision in the middle of February, it's too soon,” Jeffrey Risner, D-2nd Ward, said. “I have to agree with my colleague here. I am getting to think with the decline in cases, we need to look more at what the data is telling us to do rather than what we feel we should do.”
Councilwoman Solveig Spjeldnes, D-1st Ward, said she is hesitant to extend the mandate and questioned the reality of its enforcement.
“We have people who are following the law because they believe in it and (I’m concerned) we don't have enough teeth in this to force people to maintain it,” Spjeldnes said.
Councilman Sam Crowl, D-3rd Ward, spoke in support of the extension, adding that Council can choose to remove the extension if data suggests that in the future.
“I think having this Council support, legally, the wearing of masks, if that makes one other person wear the mask in the streets, then that's a good thing in my mind,” Crowl said. “I think we should continue to be a careful community, a community that shows that we care about one another.”
In other business, Councilman Micah McCarey, D-At Large, introduced an ordinance that would redefine race, among other terms, within the city’s anti-discrimination legislation to include more inclusive terminology.
The traits “historically associated" with race, including hair textures and protective and cultural hairstyles would now be included under the definition of “race” within Athens City Code. McCarey said those styles would include, but are not limited to, braids, cornrows, bantu knots and twists.
News Editor
