York officials know residents don’t want required masks. So why is one coming anyway?
A new face mask requirement for a York County municipality will now be written.
Elected leaders in York voted Tuesday night to draft a new mandate for face coverings in the city. York would join Rock Hill, Fort Mill, Chester and other South Carolina municipalities in the social distancing requirement related to COVID-19. The rule should be ready for final vote on Monday.
The decision comes even as many on York City Council say public sentiment goes against a mask requirement.
“People are dying,” said Councilwoman Denise Lowry. “This is not play. It’s real.”
Lowry and council members Ed Brown, Steve Love and Jim Bradford favored a mask ordinance. Mayor Mike Fuesser didn’t, joining council members Marion Ramsey and Stephanie Jarrett. The city broadcast Tuesday night’s meeting on Facebook live to limit public gathering. All council members, city staff and guests present Tuesday night wore masks.
Several council members say they spent recent weeks talking with citizens and business owners. Ramsey said he is torn on the issue, but there was clear consensus in the community.
“I’ve got to go by the numbers,” he said of a mask requirement, “and I say no.”
Jarrett said the overwhelming majority of people in York are against a mask mandate.
“The general consensus was that everyone should wear a mask,” she said. “The disengagement came with us mandating it.”
She thought a proclamation would be better. Jarrett had concerns about police enforcement, as did the mayor.
“If you’re going to enact one,” Fuesser said, “it ought to be enforced.”
The mayor said despite growing numbers of coronavirus cases in York County and South Carolina, he isn’t a fan of imposing on civil liberties and most people in the city don’t want the mandate. He worries for downtown businesses that were hit hard by the shutdown coronavirus brought on in March.
“The downtown business district is a major concern of mine,” Fuesser said.
The mayor will wear a mask and encourages others to do the same.
“I’m not for it,” he said of the mandate. “I’d still like to strongly encourage folks to wear a mask.”
Love said for him, the decision is more than math.
“The numbers to me now are not just the numbers,” he said. “They’re personalized. They’re people that I know.”
Lowry said it isn’t an issue to overcomplicate with thoughts of enforcement details.
“To me it’s a no brainer,” she said.
Lowry took offense to the suggestion by some speakers Tuesday that protection from coronavirus is a matter of faith rather than government. She said her church hasn’t met since March and it isn’t a question of faith. Brown, too, said he is a praying man and he is praying for a solution.
“We’ve got to do something,” he said. “It’s not anything to play with.”
Bradford said two weeks ago he walked Main Street and talked to merchants. He told them then he wasn’t necessarily in favor of a mandate. On Tuesday night, he was.
“As I continue to see the numbers come in...we’ve got a problem,” he said. “In York County we’ve got a significant problem.”
York doesn’t have the widespread coronavirus cases yet that other parts of the state or even York County do. Bradford hopes a mask rule will mean it never gets that far.
“Medically, we’ve got an emergency situation,” he said. “The question is, what do we do with it?”
Andy Robinson, police chief, said there was a conference call earlier Tuesday with all the police chiefs in York County to talk mask mandate enforcement in areas that might have it. He agreed with some on council who suggested enforcement would be difficult.
“We can’t go in and police every business,” Robinson said.
Violations would be a lower priority call for service, he said. The city typically has four officers at a time on shift. With vacation and other issues it could be fewer. Robinson also updated council Tuesday night on efforts to improve community relations at a time when trust in police is at the forefront for many people.
Hearing a member of the public Tuesday speak of “civil unrest” that could come from an unpopular mandate concerned the chief.
“We don’t need that, for sure,” Robinson said.
Residents argue against mask rule
Residents appealed both to God and science in arguments against masks. One woman said masks infringe on constitutional rights and it’s up to God to protect people from coronavirus and not political decisions on masks.
“Your decision may sway voters in the next election,” she said.
One man said he wore the mask Tuesday night “under extreme duress” and new rules like the one in Rock Hill to require masks don’t rely on science. Many masks say on them they aren’t designed to stop particles the size of a virus, he said. There will be “civil unrest,” he said, if the city requires masks.
“These do not protect against viruses,” he said.
Another woman said she and family members had COVID-19, but she isn’t in favor of requiring masks. She, too, said masks won’t protect York residents who instead should trust in God for their health.
“We should trust Him and our own immune systems,” the woman said.
Several speakers said they are downtown merchants who believe a mask requirement will hurt downtown business. One woman said foot traffic picked up in recent weeks due to the comfort shoppers have in York.
“People are coming here because we don’t have a mask ordinance,” she said.
Other speakers favored a mask ordinance.
William “Bump” Roddey serves on York County Council and has asked to have the discussion on a mask requirement there. Roddey spoke to the city council Tuesday in support of a mask requirement.
“We must do something to slow the spread,” Roddey said.
People wear masks now to doctor visits and other places where they’re required, Roddey said, without complaint. Courts and other county government facilities in York and elsewhere already provide or require masks, and Roddey wants the same level of concern given for retail workers in York.
“It’s good to see that people are respecting what this virus can do when they’re entering businesses,” he said.
One man asked York officials to consider how to get masks for people who can’t afford them, but said he understands a mask requirement.
“I’m wearing a mask tonight to protect y’all,” that man said, “not to protect me.”
The same man said he would be more likely to shop in places that require masks.
“I don’t go anywhere now because anywhere you go there’s five people wearing masks, and 25 who aren’t,” he said. “I’m not going to play that game.”
Still another man said he wears a mask and is fine with his employees and customers doing the same. At more than 60 years old with health concerns, he is fine wearing a mask during the coronavirus pandemic.
“I don’t want to become a statistic,” he said.
Seth Duncan, city manager, said five public comments came in prior to the meeting. Four opposed a mask requirement, while one favored it.
SC coronavirus cases increase
Duncan said the York zip code has 184 confirmed COVID-19 cases so far. Most public facilities are closed or by appointment only. Parks have reopened. Municipal court reopened Monday.
On Tuesday the state health department reported another 934 COVID-19 positive tests and 19 confirmed deaths from it. South Carolina has more than 47,000 confirmed cases and more than 800 deaths since mid-March.
The daily totals included 30 new York County cases. Since the pandemic began, York County has more than 1,500 confirmed COVID-19 cases.
The York decision follows similar ones throughout York and Chester counties. Chester passed a mask rule June 29 that went into effect for that city July 7. Penalties for not wearing masks in certain public places there reach up to a $500 fine or 30 days in jail. Rock Hill and Fort Mill passed mask mandates July 6. Those rules carry $25 to $100 fines.
On June 24 state attorney general Alan Wilson released a statement noting South Carolina municipalities are within their rights to require face coverings during the coronavirus pandemic.
This story was originally published July 8, 2020 at 7:13 AM.
