Nearly three-week old mask ordinance catching on in Norman
NORMAN—Kate Bi er man's phone started blowing up about 7:30 a.m. July 8, roughly eight hours after the Norman City Council voted to approve an emergency ordinance requiring face coverings in public places.
Friends and constituents of Bierman, the Ward 1 representative, called, texted and tagged her on social media to let her know how many stores already were complying with the ordinance.
Crest, Walmart, Copelin's Office Center, Target, and Budget Box& Bag, were among the retailers.
“This tells me these businesses wanted to do this but didn't feel like they had the support to do it,” she told The Oklahoman.
Nearly three weeks after the council approved one of the state' s first mask ordinances, compliance has been strong, according to city officials, police, business leaders, owners and employees.
For Bierman, the feedback has been positive, primarily from those who“have not been going out nearly as much as they would like to our need to because they don't feel safe doing so and now they do.”
One of the messages she received was from a woman who chat ted up another woman as they waited in line to check out of the Dollar Tree in the University North Park district. The woman told her she had come from Moore to shop because of the new policy.
“I do all my shopping in Norman now since y'all are smart enough to mandate masks,” she said.
The ordinance, which requires individuals to wear face coverings in stores and other retail establishments — including hair salons, spas, restaurants and bars — was among the first passed in Oklahoma to slow the spread of COVID-19.
“I know it is the right thing
to do ,” Mayor Breea Clark said. “It is a common sense, l ow cost, minimal effort to keep our businesses open and our economy moving!”
Not everyone, though, thinks the mandate is a good idea. Some business owners fear they'll lose customers if they try to enforce it. A gym owner who requested anonymity called it a “gray area.”
“(Some customers) literally come up to me and say `I'm not wearing mask,'” the owner said. “Problem is, if I do (enforce) then they're going to quit. Do I go out of business?”
A local hairdresser who also requested anonymity said it's frustrating to have to ask some of his customers to wear a mask.
“They'll tell you that it's a hoax or they don't care if they get it,” the hairdresser said. “These are highly educated people. I've had co-workers tell me that I should explain to these people that it's not about them getting it, it's about us getting it and transferring it.”
The policy also requires coverings be worn in public settings where people congregate, including offices, workplaces, houses of worship, child care facilities, hospital and health facilities, gymnasiums and physical fitness facilities, and adult and youth sports facilities.
“As with any new ordinance or requirement there are some growing pains as the community adjusts and we expected this ,” city spokeswoman Annahlyse Meyer said. “We did receive a high volume of calls initially with questions about compliance and clarification. Now, overall, we are seeing the majority of people in compliance.”
Since the ordinance went into effect, the Norman Police Department has responded to three disturbance calls, four trespassing calls and five contacta-subject calls, spokeswoman Sarah Jensen said Thursday.
“All were solved through further education and clarification of the ordinance,” Jensen said. “To date, no citations or arrests have been completed by NPD.”
Norman Chamber of Commerce President Scott Martin said the majority of businesses are complying with the ordinance because they do not want to be “shut down again.”
“From the start of the pandemic, the businesses in Norman have worked really hard to provide a safe work environment for their employees and a safe environment for their customers,” he said.
When the city was considering the ordinance, Martin worried businesses that have struggled since the onset of the pandemic would be further burdened with the cost of providing masks to customers and would have to become “law enforcers.””We worked closely with the city to address those concerns,” he said. “Thankfully, they were reflected in the ordinance.”
The chamber, which has about 1,500 members, partnered with Visit Norman, the city's visitor information hub, to produce free educational signage for businesses. The city, meanwhile, handed out $100,000 worth of masks to businesses in five days. The masks were purchased by an anonymous donor.
“Most people have recognized a higher degree of compliance when it comes to wearing a mask,” Martin said. “When you go around town I think you'll see more people wearing masks, whether it's in stores, restaurants or even at the ballfield.”
The ordinance also calls for bars and bar areas in restaurants to limit capacity to the number of seats available and close standing-room only areas to patrons.
“I was hoping that the mask ordinance would help people feel more safe coming out, but I don't think we're there yet,” said Laura Duprez, who coowns Gaberino's Homestyle Italian Reststaurant with her husband. “I think the only thing that's going to get people to start coming back out again is cases going down.”
Jensen said the city's Action Center is fielding the majority of complaints regarding individual compliance issues, unless there is an immediate situation requiring a law enforcement response. Code enforcement is handling all complaints and reports of compliance issues relating to business signage.
“Enforcement of the mask ordinance is taking an education first approach,” she said. “Individuals refusing to wear a face covering in a Place of Public Accommodation or Public Setting may be cited by the property owner/manager for criminal trespass, disturbing the peace, interference with official process, or similar offenses as circumstances warrant.”