PEABODY — Following the lead of the School Committee, which voted earlier this month to resume in-person meetings, the Peabody City Council voted 7-4 last week to return to face-to-face meetings at the Wiggin Auditorium beginning Aug. 27.
Members of the public and petitioners and their attorneys will still participate remotely via Zoom.
During discussion following a co-motion made by Councilor-at-Large Anne Manning Martin and Council President Tom Rossignol, Rossignoll assured the council that returning to in-person meetings is “not going to exclude anybody.
“If anything will allow us to reopen in some manner, opening in this manner with social and proper PPE and just the council as a whole,” he said.
Rossignoll set the tone early, opening the special meeting by stating that while no determination had been made, his “hope, (his) goal following the meeting (was) there will be a process in place for resuming live meetings. This is a decision that each individual has to make. We are in uncharted waters as not one of us has ever gone through a global pandemic to this magnitude that it affects individuals’ lives,” he said.
Ward 1 Councilor Craig Welton voted against returning to in-person meetings, saying he was “not in favor of opening to the public.”
Ward 6 Councilor Mark O’Neill, Councilor-at-Large Tom Gould and Ward 3 Councilor Peter McGinn also voted no.
“Everyone craves a return to normalcy, but each of us will have to weigh what they feel is best for their own personal health and lives,” O’Neill said. “Zoom has actually allowed a lot of people to take part, while it’s not perfect and not what we want. I am not in favor of in-person meetings.”
Gould said he would not attend in-person meetings.
“Personally, I will not be attending and I don’t understand what the urgency is,” he said. “Leadership is doing the right thing health-wise for the community.”
Health Director Sharon Cameron updated the council on recent data trends, noting an upward trend in cases, adding that the trend is not unique to Peabody. She said the city is experiencing similar trends as the state due to relaxed practices regarding social distancing, masks and gatherings. She suggested that best practices call for no more than 25 persons indoors with only council members and essential staff members in attendance. The auditorium and passageways will be cleaned before and after meetings and there will be only one entrance into the building. Microphones will be wiped down after use. She suggested that other city hall employees work remotely. A checklist to track symptoms and contact tracing log, if necessary, will be kept.
Mayor Ted Bettencourt talked about his plan to reopen City Hall to the public. Peabody is still the only community among abutting cities and towns which has not reopened its city/town halls to the public.
“This has been a real good discussion and I am very respectful of differing opinions on when we open City Hall, but that’s going to be my decision,” he said. “The building’s offices are closed spaces and there is no way to meet the social distancing guidelines. Space is very confined.”
He noted his concern over recent data showing a spike in COVID-19 cases, but even a moderate risk disturbs him with the city still facing over 100 active cases.
“I’m asking the reopening committee to take a little step back,” he said. “I don’t see any reason to jump back in. I love people coming into city hall and I’m meeting with people all the time.”
Peabody Access Television (PAT) Production Manager Jim Palmer assured the council that PAT has completed the required setup for School Committee meetings at the Higgins School and is “good to go the same way we will be for you.”
Despite the vote, Martin said she still has concerns over public access to meetings.
“Leadership requires that we don’t exclude the public who have no access to the internet, phones, computers or those folks who are trying to follow who have socioeconomic disadvantages,” she said. “There has been a lot of talk about what’s best for us, but we are continuing to exclude people who cannot access the internet.”
