Turlock physically reopens City Council meetings. Here are the coronavirus safety rules
People can attend Turlock City Council meetings in-person for the first time in nearly a year beginning Tuesday, but will need to follow coronavirus safety guidelines.
Staff will allow 14 members of the public to attend Tuesday’s meeting on a first-come, first-served basis, and continue to offer participation via Zoom and teleconference.
To enter, people will go through a screening process and answer health questions, City Clerk Jennifer Land said. Questions cover whether someone has a high temperature or experienced symptoms such as shortness of breath, Land said, noting people who enter City Hall during the day must go through the same process.
Attendees must also wear face coverings and practice social distancing, according to rules posted on the city website. Seating in the council chambers will be spaced out to maintain six feet requirements, so attendees are asked not to move or reposition chairs. People who have been exposed to COVID-19 in the last 14 days or have been asked to quarantine should not attend in-person.
Those allowed inside can stay for the duration of the meeting, Land said. Tuesday will be the first time a Turlock council meeting is physically open to the public since March 10, 2020. Prior to the winter surge of COVID-19 cases, Land said the city was in the process of permitting in-person public comments, but was unable to do so.
Protocols for in-person attendance may change over time for future meetings, Land said.
“At this time we aren’t doing a sign in or that type of process, but we are working through trying to determine whether there’s anything that would be requested for contact tracing (and) those types of things,” Land said. “With this being an evolving process, we’re trying to work through it as efficiently as we can.”
The city asks those interested to arrive about 15 minutes before meetings start to allow time for screening. The next regular City Council meeting starts at 6 p.m. Tuesday at 156 South Broadway or via Zoom.
