Brooklyn Center Repeals Health Emergency Declaration, Mask Mandate Remains
Back in August, Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott declared a “local health emergency” due to the spread of coronavirus delta variant infections.
Now, two months later, it turns out that particular emergency declaration was not needed. By a 5-0 vote, the city council on Monday voted to repeal the health emergency declaration.
According to Brooklyn Center City Attorney Troy Gilchrist, the repeal “shouldn’t have any effect on the city” and its ability to respond to the pandemic.
Brooklyn Center’s face mask requirement inside public buildings still remains in effect. The city council can also still continue to hold its meetings virtually.
“I think this was a prudent move initially,” said Gilchrist on the Aug. 9 emergency declaration. “We didn’t know where it was going to go. Now we’re a couple months later and we find that it hasn’t triggered the need to institute all the emergency activities that are triggered by a statutory declaration.”
The COVID-19 case rate in Brooklyn Center has decreased slightly, according to Hennepin County’s public health dashboard. But the rate is still slightly higher than countywide.
The Minnesota Department of Health on Tuesday also reported that its seven-day average test positivity rate for COVID-19 cases climbed to 8.3 percent. That’s the highest the rate has been since Dec. 13, when many people could not yet get vaccinated.
Also see: North Memorial: ICU Beds Full, System ‘Incredibly Stressed’ Due to COVID-19, Delayed Care
