07/14/2020 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes - Final July 14, 2020 Attorney Reingold announced the procedures to be followed during the public hearing, noting that each speaker would be limited to three (3) minutes when addressing the Board. County Administrator Jason Brown provided the background that led to the Face Covering Ordinance being presented to the Board for their approval. He discussed Emergency Order 2020-15, which went into effect on June 29, 2020, requiring persons to wear face coverings when entering County buildings, riding the public transit system, and also for employees of restaurants and certain businesses. Administrator Brown stated that the order was designed to educate and encourage the public to wear face coverings, and not to charge anyone with a second degree misdemeanor, a violation set according to the Florida Statutes for all Emergency Orders. He declared that no person had been charged for not wearing a face covering under Emergency Order 2020-15, and that approval of a Face Covering Ordinance would allow for the potential penalties and fines to be assigned by the Board. With the aid of a PowerPoint presentation, Administrator Brown acknowledged that, although more people were voluntarily wearing masks in public, the recent trends related to the spread of COVID-19 were concerning. He provided a short video to compare the spreading of droplets when a mask was worn to when a mask was not worn. Health Official Miranda Hawker, Florida Department of Health in Indian River County, utilized a PowerPoint presentation to provide the local statistics where it related to COVID-19 testing, positive cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. She spoke on the importance of wearing a mask. Dr. Gregory Rosencrance, President, Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital, discussed the current trend and the hospital's ability to provide necessary services to the public. He spoke in full support of the Face Covering Ordinance, and he delivered data that supported his recommendation. Dr. David Moore, School District of Indian River County (SDIRC), stated that safety was his number one concern, and that the SDIRC had been brainstorming and problem -solving to plan for school to reopen on August 10, 2020. Although there would be three (3) options available to families, Dr. Moore estimated that 80% of the students would be returning to the brick and mortar experience. He spoke in support of practices within the community that could slow the spread of COVID-19. Indian River County Florida Page 10