NEWS

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Davidson Town Commissioners voted unanimously to require masks in town, with specific emphasis on the requirement to wear masks in places of business.

The Board initially voted on a motion to authorize the Mayor to vote “yes” to queries from the county on the topic of requiring masks county-wide. While the modification to the Emergency Declaration is one that can be made autonomously by the Mayor, the intent was to make it part of public discussion.

A countywide ordinance would require support from the city of Charlotte and the six municipalities within the county: Davidson, Cornelius, Huntersville, Matthews, Mint Hill, and Pineville. Without approval from the municipalities, the ordinance would only impact unincorporated areas and those municipalities that have enacted like ordinances.

Subsequently, the board voted to send resolutions to neighboring communities – including those in neighboring counties – to ask those municipalities to join in the mask-wearing mandate.

Ultimately, and most importantly, the Board voted 5-0 to have the Mayor make an amendment to the existing emergency declaration to include the requirement to wear masks in the Town of Davidson. The approved motion is to implement the mandate as of July 1 – in the event there is no such mandate from the state in the interim. Specific details regarding the mandate will be laid out in communications from the town in coming days.

As it turned out, concurrent to the Davidson Town Board meeting, Mecklenburg County Commissioners were in their own virtual meeting. They, too, voted to mandate mask-wearing in the county. As noted above, the county’s mandate will only impact the unincorporated areas of the county if all local municipalities do not agree to support the mandate.

Meanwhile, the Governor is slated to make an announcement this week regarding masks and the prospect of changing phases in the COVID-19 recovery.