Dems slam Town Hall mask policy
Face coverings ‘highly encouraged,’ not required
Brookfield Democrats are moving the location of their January caucus, citing concerns with the town’s COVID-19 masking policies under new First Selectman Tara Carr.
The Democrats, in a statement sent to Hearst Connecticut Media, take issue with COVID-19 guidance issued by Carr on Dec. 10. Carr, a Republican, said in her update posted on the town’s website that COVID cases were rising post-Thanksgiving, adding that “infections are not as severe and most are recovering well.”
“The town mask mandate remains lifted, however masks are now highly encouraged for all (vaccinated, unvaccinated and those who do not wish to disclose their vaccination status) in all town municipal buildings,” Carr wrote in the Dec. 10 guidance.
She added that “masking guidance of municipal buildings should not single out vaccinated or unvaccinated when it comes to promulgating masking guidance, which is why masks are now encouraged for all in our town buildings.”
The lack of masking requirement in Town Hall as COVID cases rise statewide, however, prompted Democrats to move their Jan. 6 caucus from that building to Brookfield High School’s auditorium, they say. Democrats noted that prior guidance required people who were not vaccinated against COVID-19 to wear a mask in Town Hall.
“Her policy change is irresponsible and puts the public in danger,” Brookfield Democratic Town Committee Chair, Laura Orban said in a statement. “Good leaders are encouraging people to get fully vaccinated and writing policy that requires masks, as our schools do, to keep people safe.”
Carr, however, took issue with the criticism of the Democrats.
“I’m not sure that its clear to them what my current guidance is,” First Selectman Tara Carr said. “If they’re more comfortable to have their meeting elsewhere then that’s their prerogative. The building is still open and available to them.”
Carr said she was on a regional leadership call with 16 first selectmen and mayors Thursday morning and said that “no other towns are implementing mask mandates right now.”
She is recommending masks in municipal buildings and said she would ask anyone who entered unmask to wear a mask, but asked who would be responsible for enforcing a mandated ruling.
“If they want to move their meeting then by all means go ahead,” she said.
Carr’s guidance came after Brookfield Selectman Harry
Shaker tested positive COVID-19. Shaker, also a Republican, had attended a Board of Selectman meeting earlier that week unmasked. Carr tested negative after the meeting for COVID-19 but said she was quarantining at the time.
Brookfield, like most municipalities in the state, is considered a “red” town, meaning it is averaging more than 15 cases per 100,000 people over the previous two weeks. For the time period between Nov. 28 and Dec. 11, the rate in Brookfield was 42.9 cases, although the total number of cases had declined slightly from the first week of that period to the second.
Across the state, COVID-19 cases have been spiking, with a daily positivity rate of 8.93 percent Wednesday and 3,366 new cases. Gov. Ned Lamont has not issued statewide mandates for masks, instead encouraging local officials and businesses to set their own rules. There has been pressure, however, from health providers to issue more orders, including a Yale New Haven doctor who has launched a petition calling for a statewide mask mandate.
Locally, only Redding has implemented an indoor mask requirement. Bethel issued a mask mandate for town-owned buildings, but not other locations. Schools, however, have remained steadfast statewide with masking requirements. Lamont and the state Department of Health canceled a plan Wednesday that would have allowed high school athletes to remove masks beginning Thursday during indoor competition. They cited the continued uptick in COVID cases and presence of the omicron variant, which has been found to have a high rate of transmission.
The Brookfield Democratic caucus is scheduled to be held Jan. 6 at Brookfield High School at 6 p.m. to elect members for the 2022-2024 term.