[Music]
yeah okay well welcome back to the
second part of our meeting this
afternoon this is a special City Council
meeting today is June 8th Monday June
8th 2020 it's approximately 4 or 7 p.m.
we have really just one item on the
agenda but before we get to that I need
to ask I need to ask the conflict of
interest statement this is where I asked
if any member of the city staff city
manager's office or City Council has any
known conflict of interest on any item
on the agenda seeing none
item number 2 2.1 is resolution number 2
0 - 1 67 need a motion in a second
please proof andr councillor Vasquez
second by Mayor Pro Tem Gandhara and I'm
sorry who's gonna be Barbara DeLeon are
you gonna be presenting ok assistant in
terms system city manager Barbara W on
this mayor good afternoon Barbara DeLeon
for the record and I'm just going to
share my screen with you
all right good afternoon today I come to
you with a resolution on face coverings
for your consideration as we have been
discussing face coverings
we have CDC guidance for the use of face
coverings in addition to maintaining
social distance and and washing hands
and disinfecting surfaces it's a method
for reducing the spread of koban 19 the
resolution before you today encourages
the use of face coverings of the public
in any retail or commercial business in
accordance with guidance from the New
Mexico public health orders that we've
received from the state and also with
the guidance from the Centers for
Disease Control the resolution defines
retail and commercial businesses as
entities that provide good or services
to the public and we provided some
examples of those types of businesses
and because the resolution supports the
governor's Public Health orders just an
overview of what is what is required by
the public health orders that
individuals and public settings and
employees in the workplace wear face
coverings with some exceptions for
eating drinking exercising and health
issues and in addition the CDC guidance
is that the public should wear face
coverings in settings where other social
distance measures are difficult to
maintain they specify edit the face
coverings are non-medical grade for
general use and there are exceptions for
children under the age of two and for
those with reading issues or who may be
incapacitated or have difficulties
removing masks for themselves and so
with that I present to you the options
you have today for the vote on this
resolution for face coverings
miss Barbara is anyone have any
questions
mayor pro-tem Gardiner thank you
where I wanted to ask if you and/or
Christine had any public comment as it
relates to the face coverings resolution
and to if we had resolved the issues
moving forward I know through zoom we
had talked about and I felt like early
on when we worked towards having these
meetings that zoom that the can like the
majority of councillors wanted to have
people come to the meetings our
citizenry right participate in these
meetings via zoom and I know there were
Christine and others put forth a
powerpoint presentation with the
research that had been done particularly
down south with the allowance of people
as part of the meeting and so again I I
am I know that we have continued to get
feedback about the face coverings and I
want to be sure that we're hearing
hearing the public but also my second
question is does this do the emails that
are sent to you and Christine get part
get incorporated into the record some
way like a copy of it I'm not sure it
and those are those far my questions
so mayor pro-tem thank you for those
questions the the comments that I've
received the ones that were dropped off
to me earlier today we're all pertaining
to the ordinance number 29 29 which is
not what we're discussing here today
as far as the emails are concerned I
probably received 50 of them when we
when this was a topic and there's just
no way I'm gonna read 50 emails it would
take it would take two hours to do that
so I guess my question would be is the
is the now one thing that I have done
yeah and I wouldn't mind doing this if
they can send me an email that I can
read in a minute there's gonna be 50
people if this was to be held at City
Hall and I had 50 people out there I
probably allow one minute for a
discussion so if they can give me a
1-minute email I don't have a problem
doing that but some of these emails are
two pages and and I try to read fast but
I don't think I can read them that fast
and so I think if if it were you know in
light of that right or wrong I chose to
at least put how many were in support of
one position or the other but then as I
was as I did last the meeting where I
read that email it was I don't know if
it was a minute I asked him to keep it
to a minute that's fine
but I don't have a problem with that but
if we could just put a you know maybe a
paragraph or so tell most with how are
you feeling and yeah that's fine I don't
have a problem with that
but two pages and a lot of work were a
lot like that so but the what was
dropped off to me today there are all
for the most part no and they're all
regarding ordinance number 29 29 which
is not what we're discussing here
so mayor point question to Christina's
does that get incorporated some way in
the record how do we how do we be a zoom
and with what we have all agreed our and
your agreement to and I think you're
within your within the Charter right you
don't have to read all of them but I
want to know how we're incorporating
public comment to each one of these
resolutions because said no this is on
president times but I want to be sure
that we're being respectful of the
public and what their concerns are
positive or negative whatever that looks
like mayor Mayor Pro Tem Donna
Christine O'Mara acting city clerk for
the record I as I received the emails I
print out a copy for the mayor and a
copy for myself which I do store in the
record for that meeting by then any of
the ones that the mayor reads I type out
verbatim so that they are in the minutes
and so that's how I keep track of them
so Thank You Christine so the ones that
he doesn't read it goes in the record
like a copy of it and then people would
see that as they're cruising through or
if bruh whatever it'll be as a part of
the record so when we go and we look it
and asks for a written document that's
their mayor mayor pro-tem what I'm doing
is keeping them as part of the
administrative record so that's average
you get asked for all I have to do is
pull the folder and aha
okay and do you have any other updates
in terms of our feedback as it relates
to public participation via zoom I know
there was still going to be some
research and I hadn't heard anything
back mayor Mayor Pro Tem I'd have to
defer that to the city manager I believe
he was looking into that
so I I'd need to defer to him on that
and it's that David daughter sorry madam
mr. mayor Mayor Pro temp I was trying to
address another email could you restate
your question I'm sorry yes some early
on this dialogue really robust dialogue
about meeting via zoom and how public
participation rate was going to be how
we were going to garner that and so I
know Christine had given several
researched a bunch of different
municipalities and one of them down
south and I don't recall if it was
Sunland Park I believe it was Sunland
Park had zoom where the capability of
allowing so many people to participate
in the meeting and be able to have a
dialogue with us via public comment for
each of the agenda items so I thought
that a lot of us agreed that we wanted
to head into that direction but
additional information needed to be
garnered do we have any feedback on that
oh you're right you think you're muted
David
we still can't hear you can't hear you
you hear me now yes yes okay so those
headphones are good for some things and
not good for others I don't believe I
don't have any specific information
related to that Adrienne may have done
some additional research but our biggest
concern with zoom has been people
bombing the meeting and taking over and
showing inappropriate things are making
inappropriate comments
despite the mayor's efforts to control
the dialogue aye mister myiasis didn't
say anything to me specifically about
allowing additional people to
participate the I know when we adopted
the resolution in light of zoom in light
of kovat to allow this that was the
agreed practice that the comments would
be submitted to the mayor and the C
clerk and Cristina outlined what how
that happens and gets into the record or
into the file if you want to I'll follow
in the mr. myiasis but I don't know if
Adrian Guzman has anything else we could
look at adding more people I think our
biggest issue is knowing who's coming
into the meeting and who's requested to
participate the more people we add the
harder that is to control so Adrian yes
we did we did I speak I did some
research followed up some more research
on that and I did meet with councilor
Bencomo and also a city manager my
assistant some of those options we came
there's a few options we could do they
did post some more limitations if we
were because I talked to Sunland Park
and what they did and they just went
ahead and let they all their intent all
their public participation into the
meeting when talking they weren't as
they were concerned but they weren't as
concerned because they didn't get very
many they knew for it I guess for a size
of us it might be an additional issue
but basically what we'd need to do is
something like that is
we need to have the ability to mute
everybody and then keep every would not
allow people to unmute themselves so
it'd be pretty much like the mail to the
mayor to mute evening councilors and
unmute new everybody so that that raises
a few different concerns there just
because and then there's another option
where other people just call in and they
could call in and just be muted and then
once it's go down a list so there's a
few options we went through to see what
would work the city manager and
Councilman como agreed to stick with
this format for now but it's definitely
do definitely have some ideas or our
methods we can use if we need to involve
bring in the public to a zoom meeting ok
Thank You Adrian and Christina for that
research I hope that the information had
been you know once the research had been
done and hearing back from one of the
counselors would have been helpful as we
move forward and I'm getting quite a bit
of folks wanting to have you know the
same kind of public participation and
some threats about going to the Attorney
General and whatnot I know I've talked
to attorney Vega Brown and she feels
that mayor is definitely within his
right via the Charter to not he's not
obligated to read every single one and
so I just wanted to see in terms of as
we move forward and I don't see things
changing very very drastically that
maybe we really need to look at changing
change with the changing how we view
public participation be a zoom thank you
yeah thank you and Mayor Pro Tem you
know I was thinking maybe we could start
really small allow 10 people on to zoom
and just see how it goes
and maybe if we need to expand it a
little bit more but I think starting out
with 10 would be fine let me just read
to you what the Attorney General states
in their booklet when it talks about as
far as public participation it says such
restrictions are permitted the Act only
requires that persons be permitted to
attend and listen and so it's my
understanding Adrian that they have
access to this meeting both visually and
they can hear it as well if they don't
have a defense if they can't if they
don't have access to to either TV they
could they could view it it says an open
public meeting is not necessarily an
open forum and as long as the Act is
complied with which which we do public
bodies may limit or not allow public
debate and may take steps necessary to
maintain public order so I remember when
I first came to office in the city
that's the attorney basically had said
that we don't have to allow public
comment but we always have
I think we've expanded it throughout the
years but there was a time when I came
on board when it was very limited so and
and they never spoke at a work session
never that was never else permitted we
were we were the first ones to start
allowing that so I think we've been
pretty fair but I think if we somehow
David Han and Adrian if we let's just
say we started off with ten people and I
think it'll probably be okay because I
don't think I don't foresee after
today's resolution which ironically I
think I might have seen one email on
that resolution and that one resolution
was don't pass a resolution passed the
ordinance or in it and then these other
these other ones were all for the
ordinance like you know how dare you do
this don't do this you know so I think
we might be okay just starting off with
10 and maybe down the road if
we can manage it maybe 15 and I think
that would be good and maybe even 20
I don't know but will it take some small
steps but I think we can we can somehow
advertise in the public that the first
10 people will respond to the city you
know we get their name they have to fill
out like an application so we know who
they are and and then we give them the
credentials and you know if they if they
end up doing something that they're not
supposed to be doing at least we know
who did it mr. schmear counts are gone
there I will circle back tomorrow with
interim city manager myiasis and
Christine and Adrian to work out the
mechanism by which to allow a limited
number of public thanks David
councilor sword you have a comment okay
mayor pro-tem you're finished correct um
sorry I was muted yes I am for now okay
officer Sargon and counselor buskers
yeah Thank You mayor I from all the
comments that I've gotten by email or by
telephone calls voice messages and so on
it the vast majority are what people
that just don't understand where Anna
mask what you know where can I can't do
it and so forth and with that I I think
we put a strong effort out as to where
they where you use the masks and where
you don't because a lot of people think
you're you use them in places you don't
have to and some people as you see
they'll be wearing them as they're
driving down the street once in a while
I'll see one of those so PSAs are coming
I know of one that is done and it's
ready to go we just have to get the PIO
to approve where the city manager
approve it and so I think that's very
important I just want to make one
comment about this whole mass
thing in general excuse me is your
comment going to be on this resolution
yeah resolution if we had a president in
this country that would wear a mask or
he's supposed to wear a mask and would
advocate for wearing a mask and in this
country we wouldn't have near the amount
of controversy with this I strongly feel
that and so I just want to make that
comment and let's get the information or
the the PSA is out and and spread the
word as to wear a mask is should be used
in words have to be used Thank You Man
hmm okay and counselor Bastas Thank You
mayor yeah I think for the record I
still support this being enforceable in
some way or another but understanding
the resolution is probably I guess in a
symbolic way the only the only option we
have left to encourage the public to to
wear mass in commercial and retail
places I thought I saw the numbers from
the governor to come in just now if
she's I think we're up at 17 higher than
Bernalillo County
I think Bernalillo County today is 11
and they have for population six or
seven times our size and so I just think
in this time I'm not sure it's the best
decision to just go with the resolution
in terms of protecting the health of
people in these establishments but
regardless the education that the city
will put out and hopefully continue
dialogue with that community encourages
people to be good neighbors and be
responsible for the health of other
people and so on that's all I wanted to
say on that today thank you thank you
counselor counselor Flores
Thank You mr. mayor and I totally agree
with with councilor Alaska's you know I
am Friday I was prepared to vote YES on
it and just in the course of discussion
and all the information received from
dr. Landon really went to you know to
having such an ordinance but in the
questions that you know the discussion
that came up in so far as enforcement
just you know when push came to shove it
was hard for me to in all my my sense of
you know just a sense of what's fair and
what's not
to criminalize not wearing a mask yes
it's true it's horrible that someone
would go and cop on somebody and maybe
infect that person and that person would
die in fact you know exponentially a
bunch of other people and yes I agree
with councilor Vasquez it's it's a
delicate balance and it's um but I just
can't see criminalizing that behavior I
just can't and I mean to get you know
someone says well that's just a petty
you know just a mystic misdemeanor well
it's still it's still a crime and there
are some jobs that people have that
require a squeaky-clean record in
certain fields so you know I thought
about maybe having an ordinance that was
civil and that that did come up but our
attorney Vega Brown wasn't entirely sure
that how what kind of a civil ordinance
or would be you know what the
consequences would be if he violated
that civil ordinance and then and then
the big stickler always is enforcement
enforcement and force
and I received an angry a very you know
I could just hear this person yelling at
me was a very dear friend and it's a
legislator you know North could just you
know yell you know just in her text said
you know there's there's no point in
having a resolution you need Normans you
need you know you got some teeth you
know you have to have a penalty there so
I'm definitely for this for this
resolution but I would like our legal
staff mr. dalla had since you're the
acting city manager at this point to
look into a civil have an ordinance in
part of it is I think I think all of us
are feeling an excuse me
strike that I was thinking that if we
happened ordinance that that pen eliza's
this behavior that could be potentially
criminal actually I mean if someone if
someone cops on you and that person
knows that he or she's infected I mean
that could be a criminal battery I mean
you know it's far-fetched but it could
be if it could be a battery so there is
something on the books right now that
people could go after could use in that
regard but but if we could have
something along the lines of a civil you
know in organs and have some sort of a
consequence for not being in conformance
of it I think I don't know I think that
would be the best way to go but as far
as this one this I'm a hundred percent
behind the resolution and I just hope
that people really understand how
dangerous it is to to be out there not
knowing you might be as a symptomatic
who might be contagious or infectious so
I just hope that people take that to
heart if they you know when you have
freedoms any kind of freedom comes with
responsibilities
so you want the freedom not to wear a
mask then you know you want the freedom
to be out without a mask well then you
know the responsibilities is on you but
it's affecting other person was like no
more anyway thank mr. mayor but I or
this counselor because doobie
Thank You mayor
I wanted to update I know a lot of
emails that we had gotten about this
resolution called into question the
World Health Organization and their use
of masking I'm right now I'm trying to
show it I'm reading off the who website
on and they're updates for non-medical
fabric masks and it says however for
widespread transmission with limited
capacity for implementation control
measures and especially in settings
where physical distancing of at least
one meter is not possible such as on
truck transport in shops or in other
combined or crowded environments the who
advises governments to encourage the
general public to use non-medical fabric
masks so I just thought that was
important for us to know it does give
more guidance on it once again it does
state that a mask is a basically is part
of a comprehensive strategy of measures
to suppress transmission and save lives
and so I think that's important I would
encourage people to look at that it does
you know there's always concerns of
course so distancing hand-washing are
the best but masks are just one of the
many tools that we have and to help slow
that transmission and the risk I would
say for not wearing them and and if we
don't aren't able to control this spread
if we continue to see cases you know in
our community that balance of that
physical mental and economic health
might become unbalanced and we'll have
to take other measures so I greatly
encourage everyone to wear a mask when
you can wear you can I look forward to
assisting in any way I can't
distribute masks and seeing that public
education out especially I would like to
emphasize that I guess we need education
on hygiene as well for masks how to wear
on how to take them off and their
washing so Thank You Mara
thank you Mayor Pro Tem do you have
another question dumare not so much a
question just to comment Thank You
councillor I baked the stove Ian and
others
I support the mask I wear them to
protect you from me as I've said in the
past I have a daughter who works in the
health care she's a doctor and so along
with you I know you've received quite a
few emails suggesting that it's very
dangerous and your oxygen levels and I
think you all received the same email I
did with pictures of a woman who with a
mass wearing it for 10 minutes and
checked her oxygen level and said it
doesn't affect your oxygen level and so
or that you are being tested for your
ability to wear a mass and that isn't
why you're being tested to wear a and
they basically you're being tested
tested if you will to make sure you have
the proper seal the proper one and that
is coming from dr. Guevera so it's
really difficult for me I've not mic me
dr. Gondo my daughter who is a doctor
full-fledged doctor so it's it's really
hard for me to to not agree to this and
I'm I'm very concerned about our numbers
since Friday mayor and as you know we've
had huge numbers huge numbers I think
Friday was 26 hovering 17 16 the next
few days and councillor boxes just
said that we're in the 17 today and
quite frankly for people to to
understand that in order for us to open
up and move through phase 2 there's a
there will be a question on whether Dona
Ana County can do that now because of
what these numbers look like and I hate
to say it but these numbers look like
what people were doing for Memorial Day
and graduation frankly and and I I just
I'm asking employment people to be
responsible I've always been proud of
this city and how we have how we have
responded together and when we are faced
with a problem and that's together
protecting each other helping each other
out and I just want to say how important
I think that is moving forward everyone
economic stability as we move forward we
have to grapple with this and you know
those 1800 petition signatures and where
are they where are they consistently to
work with us to ensure how we work
together as we move forward in terms of
opening this city up and protecting one
another in their business community that
means that we have to use the mass and
social distance and honestly this does
not give us permission on opening that
doesn't give us permission to just go
out it still means social distance stay
home and mayor this weekend and council
I met somebody who had two family
members contact contract covet and it
wasn't pretty
it was horrible to hear I was so
devastated for this individual person as
they spoke up well this is a person who
knows of
who works with them and then their their
parent passed away and the other ones
struggling and in the hospital and still
been on the respirator for over 30 days
so I'm saying this because I feel it's
real and maybe in our educational
campaign maybe we can implore people who
have contracted it and have found the
other side of this and maybe those that
have not that maybe Adrienne and RPO can
interview them maybe they've not to
cessation allies but just to let people
know this is real this is happening and
we have to take care of one another
so with that Marian completely for this
I would agree I don't want to
criminalize this I would like for our
Jennifer Baker broaden our legal
department to look into what maybe those
civil penalties might be as we move
forward because I just you know after
Friday it was a rough meeting and then
we got the numbers new and we continued
to get these high numbers and it sort of
it's like you know where are we at what
do we do as a community moving forward
mayor do you have any answers just
continue to to ask businesses to do
their best to keep places clean to use
best practices that that the state is
provided and for those members of the
public who do go out please be
respectful know that it's as you
mentioned earlier it's to not only
protect you but also the other person
it's a sign of respect and and a
responsibility really when you get right
down to it so that's the best we can we
can ask for
anything else mayor Burton okay
Callister Bastas oh man thank you
sorry about that mayor had my left my
hand up there okay okay well we're here
at the resolution so if there's no
further discussion Christine you on the
call for the vote please
this is on the motion to approve
resolution 20 - 167 counselor beta
Stevie yes cancer ruscus yes counselor
Bencomo yes that's her so work yes
counselor Flores yes counselor gone then
uh yes mayor yes okay great thank you
entertain a motion to adjourn
yes I Cal so sorry we allow any comments
from the council I know I just asked for
it before you went to the vote you know
not on that the amendment or rather the
resolution but I'm not comments in
general well we don't have that in on
our agenda this was just a special
council meeting
okay too bad thank you I'm sorry okay so
I'm sorry there was a who made the
motion to adjourn
you did Mayor Pro Tem gondola whoo-whoo
second it second by councilors that we
adjourn all those in favor signify by
saying aye I was opposed we're adjourned
is 444 p.m. and Christine I'll just stay
on and then we'll do the agenda set a
meeting it's mere whenever you're ready
just let me know
okay I'm ready when you are
great okay so this is the agenda set a
meeting for our June 15th 2020 City
Council meeting number one non consent
one not consent to a consent to consents
free consent three consent for consent
or consents 5 consent 5 consent 6 non
consent 6 non concerns a man on consent
7 non concern 8 non-consent 8 non
concerns 9 9 consent 9 9 consent and
consent
10 consent that me consent 11 consents
12 consent 12 consent thank you