Bentonville council to take up face covering question tonight

Committee: Rule would exempt outdoor activities

The Bentonville City Hall is shown in this photo.
The Bentonville City Hall is shown in this photo.

BENTONVILLE — The city’s Committee of the Whole on Monday night discussed a proposed mask ordinance.

The item will move to tonight’s City Council meeting for approval. The meeting will start at 6 p.m.

The city requires residents to wear face coverings as suggested by the Arkansas Department of Health, according to the ordinance.

The ordinance will allow the city to support the decisions and actions of business owners related to masks. People who will not wear a mask if requested by businesses should be asked by the businesses to leave the premises, according to the ordinance.

“This is something we can manage and mitigate,” Police Chief Jon Simpson told the council members. “We have a plan in place to answer those calls.”

The ordinance provides for reasonable accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act and has a sunset clause.

Councilwoman Cindy Acree said she had heard from constituents who want to know what businesses require masks.

Several residents Monday night spoke against a mask ordinance. Among their concerns were how the ordinance would be enforced, how masks might impact the city’s economy and how a mask ordinance could pit neighbor against neighbor. Some of the residents who spoke said they were business owners.

It was agreed by the committee to add a section that will say the ordinance isn’t applicable to outdoor recreational activities.

The word “educate” in the ordinance also will be changed to “inform.”

City staff will print and mail the ordinance to all businesses in the city for display in a prominent area of the business or on the primary entrance way, according to the ordinance.

Last month, the City Council passed a resolution in support of the “Our Bentonville — Be Safe, Be Smart” public awareness campaign and health authority guidance related to covid-19.

There were 572 new cases of covid-19 reported in the state Monday, bringing the total number of cases to 28,939 since the start of the pandemic. The state reported its largest one-day increase of cases, 1,061, on Saturday.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson announced July 3 he signed an executive order allowing Arkansas cities to adopt a model ordinance to require the wearing of face masks in response to the covid-19 pandemic.

Fayetteville and Rogers have passed ordinances requiring the wearing of masks. Rogers passed its ordinance July 6 in an 8-0 vote, passing verbatim a model ordinance worked out through cooperation of the governor, the state Health Department and the Arkansas Municipal League, a lobby that represents cities.

Springdale’s City Council tonight will consider urging residents to wear masks to keep others safe from covid-19.

Mike Jones may be reached by email at [email protected] .

City staff will print and mail the ordinance to all businesses in the city for display.

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