06/30/2020
COVID-19 UPDATE: MANDATORY INDOOR MASK ORDER
The mayor of Cedar Park has issued an emergency mandatory face covering order requiring that “all commercial entities and non-profits (other than churches and places of worship) within the city limits that provide goods or services directly to the public must require every person over the age of ten inside their facilities or buildings to wear a face covering over their mouth and nose when that person is within six feet of another person.” According to the order, a face covering is not required while outdoors.
Until the order is terminated, you will be required to wear a mask to enter the Yellow House Foundation building for all inside meetings of the Hope Group—so be sure to bring your own mask. Outside meetings will likely continue to take place on the back patio and are not subject to this City of Cedar Park order. Our online Zoom meetings will continue to be held as well.
While we each have our own opinions within the group about face masks, virology, and politics, we as members of Alcoholics Anonymous remain focused on our Primary Purpose—to carry the message to the alcoholic who still suffers. We can do that with masks on just as well as without and be a good member of the Cedar Park community by abiding by this order. We look forward to seeing you in the room (or patio or Zoom)!
View the full statement by Cedar Park Mayor Corbin Van Arsdale:
https://www.facebook.com/CorbinCedarPark/posts/3004739042955985
Official June 29th Order from the City of Cedar Park:
https://www.cedarparktexas.gov/home/showdocument?id=15175
After listening to feedback from our residents, our Cedar Park Chamber of Commerce, and several key business owners in one-on-one calls, later today I’m issuing an order that directs our Cedar Park businesses and non-profits to require face coverings indoors for both employees and visitors. It will become effective this Wednesday. You will see similar directives issued shortly by Georgetown, Taylor, Round Rock, Hutto, and Leander in an effort to slow down the COVID spread, save our ICU bed capacity, and protect businesses from a second wave of shutdowns that could bankrupt them.
First, this will protect our Cedar Park residents. Our Wilco ICU bed usage is at 88% and expected to fill soon if big changes don’t happen right now. Cedar Park has only four ICU beds currently available. One of us, or someone we care about, may need an ICU bed this summer. We must do everything we can to make sure that bed will be there. Since I’ve been on the city council, I don’t remember receiving more emails/phone calls about any issue than I have in the last 10 days on the issue of face coverings. The ratio from residents has been 9-to-1 in favor of businesses requiring face coverings.
Second, this will protect our businesses and our economy—particularly our small businesses. The businesses themselves have universally told me they are highly supportive of having such a directive in place. When a customer infects one of their employees, sometimes the entire business has to temporarily shut down. Also, businesses should not have to deal with unequal playing fields with their competitors when making mask policies, while they’re fighting to survive. That playing field should be level. Further, not requiring face coverings will expose our businesses to tremendous liability exposure from post-COVID litigation. While our large corporate and multi-national businesses can maybe survive a second statewide shutdown, our smaller businesses simply can’t—many would be bankrupted by that. We can’t let that happen.
***The main reason to wear face coverings is not to protect ourselves, it’s to protect OTHERS from our spreading COVID should we have it but not realize it.*** We must slow down the spread by keeping six feet distance from others and, when we can’t, by wearing face coverings. Lots of uncertainty remains about this virus. If we’re wrong about face coverings, then it’s a small inconvenience. But if we’re right about them, we’re saving lives and we’re saving our economy.
I know these are tough times. We’ve all been highly affected. It’s been hard. This isn’t a time for politics or selfishness. Our main priority right now is to make choices that help our neighbors. It’s one of the things that makes us Cedar Park. So let’s keep being there for each other. We will get through this together.—CORBIN
