San Antonio City Council officially extends Stay Home, Work Safe orders

SAN ANTONIO (KTSA News) – The San Antonio City Council Thursday officially voted to extend the Stay Home, Work Safe orders issued the Mayor Ron Nirenberg Wednesday evening.

Nirenberg’s sixth Public Health Emergency Declaration is in effect through May 19.

At the beginning of his presentation, City Attorney Andy Segovia said he wanted to clarify that the local orders are in line with the Governor’s latest Public Health Emergency Declaration.  Segovia said that are not more “draconian,” and they do not run “far afield” from the state’s Stay Home orders.

“One is, stay at home.  Two is limit social gatherings.  Three, if you’re going to leave the home, it should be to engage in essential activities or essential services, and those essential services and businesses are based on guidance issued by Homeland Security, and that’s what we’ve been following and that’s what the state’s been following,” said Segovia.

He described the fourth pillar as adhering to social distancing guidelines and appropriate hygiene. Number five, Segovia said, is active community outreach and active enforcement.   While the city says people over the age of ten must wear face coverings in public places where social distancing is difficult, there no longer is a fine or penalty.

City Manager Erik Walsh says, while the city cannot impose a fine or penalty for not wearing a face covering, businesses can choose to require patrons to wear masks.

“That is private property and that’s completely up to them,” he said. “If there’s a patron who visits a retail store or establishment, they could call the police and they could be ‘trespassed’ off the property, just like any sort of unruly customer could.”

District 10 councilman Clayton Perry was the only one to vote against the latest ‘Stay Home’ orders.  He disagrees with the working of the local orders that say people “must” wear face coverings instead of using the word “should.”

“I still think that we’re overstepping those bounds on saying it’s mandatory versus you should wear it,” said Perry.