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There being no further comments or discussion, Ernest Virgilio moved to refer the matter of 97 <br /> Sunset Strip to Town Counsel. Motion seconded by Kripani Patel. Roll call vote: Ernest Virgilio <br /> (yes); Kripani Patel (yes); Brian Baumgaertel (yes). VOTE: Unanimous (3-0). <br /> 3. COVID-19 Update and Review of Mask Requirements. Mr. Harrington commented that there <br /> were two matters up for consideration: 1)masks in schools and 2)Town-wide mask use in public <br /> spaces. The Board previously voted to support the mask mandate that was set by the <br /> Commissioner of DESE. That mandate will be revisited by DESE on October 151 <br /> Mr.Virgilio expressed his objections to a possible Town-wide mask mandate, and stated that the <br /> matter required further discussion. Chair Baumgaertel responded that he preferred to address <br /> the two matters relating to masks separately and,since the Board had already taken a position to <br /> support the school mask mandate, and the state hadn't revised its position, the only possible <br /> action would be to revoke their previous vote. Mr.Virgilio was of the opinion that parents should <br /> be the ones deciding whether their children have to wear masks. Chair Baumgaertel stated that, <br /> as a parent of children in the Mashpee schools, he agrees that parents should have the ability to <br /> make decisions about their own children; however, the Town has a responsibility to ensure that <br /> all students are protected. Ms. Patel expressed the opinion that masks do not impact students' <br /> ability to accomplish what they need to while in school. <br /> Chair Baumgaertel asked Mr. Harrington for an update on the case numbers in Town. Mr. <br /> Harrington reported that the current rate in Mashpee is 4.49%. The previous week, there were <br /> 35 cases in Town, and there are 16 active cases this week. Mr. Harrington was of the opinion <br /> that we are beyond the Labor Day surge, and he recommended not doing anything on a Town- <br /> wide basis. Originally, local Health Agents across the Cape were looking at a threshold of 3% <br /> positivity for a possible regional mask requirement but, despite the numbers, that hasn't <br /> happened. Mashpee case numbers have gone from 35 to 16 in the last week, indicating that the <br /> positivity rate is two weeks behind the active case data. The hospitals are not seeing severe cases <br /> that require ICU beds, and the number of COVID deaths are down considerably. The County is <br /> using 5% as an indicator that the spread of the disease is being contained, and anything higher <br /> means the spread is not contained. Mr. Harrington confirmed that we are close to being able to <br /> vaccinate children. <br /> Chair Baumgaertel stated that there was pushback last year from parents about notifications of <br /> school cases, so the superintendent stopped sending them out this year, <br /> Chair Baumgaertel opened the floor to public comment. <br /> Elana Doyle, Sunset Strip, introduced herself for the record. She presented information about <br /> case counts and positivity rates in the County, and also presented detailed information on the <br /> FDA's requirement that all non-M95 masks carry a warning label, no for use for anti-viral <br /> protection or infection prevention. <br /> Mike Riley, Webquish Lane, introduced himself for the record. He commented that children do <br /> not know how to properly wear a mask hygienically, and we have not looked into the adverse <br /> effects of extended mask use by children. <br /> Lisa Cannata, Cayuga Avenue, introduced herself for the record. She commented that there is no <br /> evidence that children are at risk of dying from or even contracting the COVID virus. She <br /> presented statistics from the CDC website, indicating that children are at a much higher risk of <br /> 2 <br />