05-04-2020 Regular CCM - Laserfiche WebLink

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City Council Minutes May 4, 2020 Page 5 Councilmember Wagner questioned if Councilmember Ovall could participate virtually if the remainder of the Council met in person. Mr. Portner said he could as the Legislature changed the Open Meeting Law to deal with the pandemic and Councilmembers participating virtually are no longer required to be in a public place. Discussion took place on whether masks would be required for the public. Mr. Portner noted he has some cloth masks available for Council and staff but not enough for the public. He noted June 1 has a couple public hearings that may draw more people and it may be difficult to keep people masked. Mayor Dietz questioned what would happen if someone showed up to the meeting without a mask. Mr. Portner indicated public safety could assist. Councilmember Westgaard stated if masks are required and someone does not comply, they would not be allowed in just like at other businesses. Mayor Dietz questioned if we would have to make masks available for purchase. Mr. Portner indicated he will defer to the Chief. Chief Nierenhausen indicated the Police Department does not have any available for the public. He noted the Fire Department may have some cloth masks but those cannot be collected back once they are given out. The Chief expressed concern with the Police Department removing someone from a public government meeting for not wearing a mask. Mayor Dietz indicated he does not want it to get ugly and questioned if the Council thought it would be an issue with people showing up without masks. Councilmember Westgaard indicated it could and he would prefer to be prepared with incurring the costs to provide masks or to get the word out for meeting rules. He questioned the urgency with resuming in -person meetings on May 18 stating waiting until June 1 might put the city in a better position to be safe and follow the appropriate guidelines. Mayor Dietz stated he agrees with Councilmember Westgaard and believes rushing back to in -person meetings on May 18 may open the city up to trouble and he would rather be safe and hold off until June 1. Mr. Portner indicated he is hopeful some of the guidelines will be more relaxed by June 1. He stated an option for other commissions is to continue virtual meetings and have someone from staff or the Commission present at City Hall to take live comment. Councilmember Wagner explained as much as she'd like to resume in -person meetings on May 18, she does not want to put the Council in a position to have to remove someone from the meeting if they refuse the rules. Chief Nierenhausen indicated normally the Police Department would remove Ai someone for not abiding by the Council's rules at the Council's request; however, he r0 1 1 a I 1 01 A""URA