Low turnout, COVID force return to online meetings

ANSONIA - It was supposed to be a return to normal.

The Board of Aldermen resumed in-person meetings last month but for its May 10 meeting and for the immediate future, the panel has reversed course and is now going back to virtual meetings. The board cited low participation during the previous meeting and a recent COVID flareup that included several confirmed cases in City Hall.

Other city meetings will continue in person, according to Corporate Counsel John Marini.

Board president Josh Shuart said it was tough for people to go back to in-person meetings.

“People have gotten used to being able to go from one meeting to another,” he said. “And as soon as the meeting is over they close their computer and they’re home already.”

Last month’s meeting was sparsely attended, with about a dozen members of the public in attendance. Before the pandemic, Shuart said residents regularly packed the chamber.

But it wasn’t just city residents who didn’t show up. The board’s April 12 meeting convened with just eight of the 13 aldermen present.

“We had a quorum, but it wasn’t an overwhelming number,” Shuart said.

Other meetings, such as a public hearing on the proposed city budget were also poorly attended he said.

In addition to the convenience, COVID is still a factor, according to Marini. Cases have been rising statewide and Ansonia had 11.9 cases per 100,000 as of May 5 according to the state’s COVID data portal.

Marini said people are staying away possibly due to fears over contagion and the decision to revert to virtual meetings was made to prevent more infections.

“We just don’t want to have a large scale meeting like a Board of Aldermen meeting in person in small tight quarters with no masks and have the possibility of a larger outbreak,” Marini said.

Mayor David Cassetti downplayed concerns over COVID exposure. Cassetti previously said COVID was no longer a threat earlier in March when the city ended the mask mandate for City Hall. He made similar comments in 2021 saying the virus was under control. The omicron variant would later sweep through the state, causing a rise in infections.

However, despite the about-face on in-person aldermen meetings,

Cassetti continued to say the virus “no concern.”

“Everything is down. I know that we’re at 10 percent. But in Ansonia, we have protections in City Hall, all to prevent that,” he said.

Marini said masks and vaccination would remain optional for city employees.

John Feddern, chair of the Democratic Town Committee said virtual meetings make it easier for more residents to attend meetings.

“I’m glad they went back to virtual because now I can actually go to public session,” he said. “My wife just got COVID, so I have a PCR test pending so I don’t know if I’m going anywhere.”