Masks are now being mandated in Okotoks - sort of.
Council voted at its Aug. 17 meeting to make the face coverings mandatory in its Town-owned buildings, but they won't be the law in other public indoor spaces unless the number of active cases in Okotoks reaches its watch-level, determined by the Province based on population, of 15 active COVID cases.
It's a decent compromise given the fact a blanket face mask bylaw was squashed at the special council meeting of July 27 and replaced with the option to require masks in Town facilities. Since that meeting, the Town received 37 letters in favour of public masking and 62 against, indicating the level of divide within the community on the issue.
No doubt this decision is riddled with controversy, and council is in a tight spot as it tries to mitigate risk but also stay within its purview.
The Town has opted to take care of its own business (the facilities it runs), just as other business owners are creating their own policies on masking as they see fit.
In Okotoks, Walmart already implemented its own mask rules on Aug. 12 and other businesses are making those calls as necessary, which is how it should be.
A municipal council should not be the governing body on whether public masking is the law. That directive should be coming from the Province and medical officials who, so far, have only strongly recommended mask-wearing as part of the fight against COVID transmission when physical distancing is not possible.
It's not an easy task to make this decision on behalf of the community, but Okotoks councillors have done their level best to take all concerns and opinions into account while forming their policy.
Waiting to implement the bylaw until the cases rise may seem like a risky game, but with the number of people outwardly opposed to mandatory masking it's likely the safest option to appease the public while still keeping health and safety in mind.
In the meantime, those who choose to mask can continue to do so as we continue to fight this virus together.
