Masks required at events, government offices closed

By Ally Lanasa, Staff Writer

(Nov. 26, 2020) As covid-19 cases continue to rise in Worcester County, Berlin Mayor Zackery Tyndall last Wednesday

Zackery Tyndall

issued a Civil Emergency Declaration requiring masks to be worn downtown during activities and closed all town government buildings to the public until further notice.

Town Administrator Jeff Fleetwood said the declaration is needed to reassure the residents and visitors that the mayor and the council are committed to the fight against the coronavirus.

In making the decision, Tyndall consulted with the Town Council, Fleetwood, Town Attorney Dave Gaskill and Police Chief Arnold Downing.

Town Hall, the Planning and Zoning Office, and the Berlin Welcome Center are among the buildings closed to the press and public at this time.

Town employees are working on alternating schedules to protect their safety and to ensure that the town’s work can continue during the pandemic.

“I know this is going to be a similar schedule to what we had in the spring,” Tyndall said.

Fleetwood added that more than 80 percent of the town employees are able to telework.

He also said town staff are responsible for self-evaluating their health daily for any symptoms of a covid-like illness.

“Based on the CDC and the Worcester County Health Department guidelines, if any employee fits the categories on an affirmative perspective, they’re then required to make notification to the department head or to myself,” Fleetwood said.

All Berlin mayor and council meetings will be closed to the press and public and streamed live on Facebook until the mayor and council can meet entirely online. Tyndall said the town is exploring Zoom for upcoming meetings.

“I reached out to several of the neighboring municipalities, some use Zoom. I think only one uses Microsoft Teams,” Tyndall said. “The town does have a Microsoft 365 Office subscription, so that fits within our subscription allotment, however the usability was not as user-friendly or familiar to people as what Zoom is. So, we’ll be opting for Zoom in the future.”

Additionally, all boards and commissions meetings will be canceled until preparations can be made for their members to meet entirely online.

Unknown at this point is whether any December boards or commissions meetings will occur.

“December might be hard,” Tyndall said. “If their membership is familiar [with Zoom], then that’s something that’s definitely open to them. If they don’t feel confident moving forward with Zoom, then we will have some training sessions available for everybody and hopefully have everything ready to go by January.”

The town’s mask mandate will apply to this weekend’s “Ice Ice Berlin Art Sculptures Stroll & Holiday Shop Night and Small Business Saturday.” Masks must be worn from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. in downtown Berlin. Masks will also be mandated for 2nd Friday on Dec. 11 from 4-9 p.m.

“It’s mainly just to make sure that everybody stays safe,” Tyndall said. “We’re experiencing a rise in cases across the state, and we just want to make sure that everybody that comes and visits Berlin as well as those that live and work here are safe and we’re doing our part as a local government.”

For more information about the town’s response to the novel coronavirus pandemic, contact the mayor at 410-641-3858.