Ordinance closes some businesses, restricts public access for others
The City Council voted Monday to pass Ordinance 3525 which puts into place several measures aimed at reducing the local spread of Covid-19 virus. The ordinance was approved unanimously by the council after Mayor Dale Copeland proclaimed a State of Emergency for the city.
Under the ordinance, several local businesses will be required to adjust practices to prohibit or reduce public access, including closure in some cases.
Closed
Effective 5 p.m. March 24, the following business will be closed to the public:
- Any bar that does not provide items for off-premises consumption
- Athletic gyms, exercise facilities, indoor sports facilities, indoor climbing facilities, bowling alleys, skating rinks, trampoline parks and similar recreational facilities
- Movie theaters
- Shopping mall food courts
Open but no public access
Bars that do provide items for off-premises consumption as well as breweries, taverns and restaurants will be restricted to:
- Drive-through service
- Take-out or delivery of food
- Sale of prepackaged alcohol as authorized for sale under state law
- Sale of other retail items as authorized for sale under state law
The public will not be allowed to enter these establishments.
Not included
These restrictions do not apply to:
- Institutional or in-house food cafeterias that services residents
- Employees and clients of businesses
- Child care facilities
- Hospitals and/or medical clinics
- Long-term care facilities
Businesses with restricted access
Tattoo shops, massage therapists, barber shops, haircut and styling shops and spas may operate only under the following conditions:
- By appointment with no walk-in customers
- Appointments may not be scheduled and held within 15 minutes of the preceding appointment
- Clients may not bring any other person, including children, into the facility during an appointment
- Workstations must have a minimum of six feet of space from the adjoining workstation to promote social distancing
No restricted access
These restrictions do not apply to:
- Places of public accommodation that offer food and beverage not for on-premises consumption, including grocery stores, markets, convenience stores, pharmacies, drug stores and food pantries
- Health care facilities, child care facilities, residential care facilities, and congregate care facilities
- Crisis shelters, soup kitchens, or similar institutions
Ordinance strengthens existing measures
The following measures went into effect at 11:59 p.m. March 23:
- All existing special event permits are revoked and no further special event permits will be issued.
- Municipal Court is suspended other than by teleconference where required. No further failure to appear warrants will be issued.
- All code enforcement hearings are suspended.
- Public gatherings of greater than 10 people will not be allowed at any City owned or managed facilities except as required by law.
- All reservations of City facilities are suspended. Deposits held for any current reservations will be refunded in full.
- Further utility cutoffs are suspended, and the City Manager is directed to reestablish service for any disconnected customer. Amounts due will not be forgiven.
- City-owned pools will not be opened.
- The Bartlesville Public Library and Bartlesville Area History Museum are closed to the public.
- All City board and committee meetings are canceled except for City Council and Authority meetings. Authorities are encouraged to meet only when absolutely necessary. When meeting, the City Council and Authorities are required to utilize the provisions of Senate Bill 661 and to conduct only teleconference meetings where technologically possible. In order to simplify implementation of teleconference meetings, the requirement for citizens to be heard is suspended for all meetings during the duration of this emergency.
- The use of City-owned meeting rooms for public gatherings of any size is prohibited. Meeting rooms may still be used by City staff when necessary.
- All in-person gatherings for social, spiritual and recreational purposes, including but not limited to community, civic, public, leisure, faith-based, or sporting events; parades, concerts, festivals, conventions, fundraisers and similar activities are strongly discouraged while these measures are in effect.
Further review
Under the ordinance, an advisory board will be created that will include the mayor and vice mayor, city manager, fire chief, police chief, medical experts, emergency management, county government and others deemed necessary by the mayor and vice mayor. The board will review the measures instituted by the ordinance and make recommendations to the City Council.
Additionally, the Bartlesville Development Authority will create a task force to study the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The task force will focus on current business retention, small business assistance during the current crisis.
For more information, see:
State of Emergency Dale Copeland