City Council plans to return to in-person meetings March 29

The City Council Tuesday night voted unanimously to return to in-person council meetings starting March 29, citing declining COVID-19 numbers. Council members also agreed that mask wearing during the in-person sessions for both city officials and the public can be voluntary.

Councilor Susie Hidalgo-Fahring made the motion to return to meeting face-to-face, saying she was swayed by federal, state and Boulder County recommendations to drop mask requirements.

“It seems like we know more about the virus, we have more mitigating practices in place,” Hidalgo-Fahring said. “It’s time for us to move back.”

The council voted in December to conduct business via Zoom because the pandemic was making a strong comeback. City Manager Harold Dominguez told the council Tuesday night that waste water testing for COVID shows a continued slide of the virus and that case loads in Boulder County also are declining.

“The numbers continue to decrease in the county,” Dominguez told the council. The March 29 meeting was picked to help city crews to adequately prepare for in-person sessions.