NASHUA – The full Board of Aldermen Tuesday night voted 13-2 in favor of adopting an amendment that adds seven provisions to the nine that are outlined in the original ordinance the board adopted in May.

The new provisions, among other things, prohibit employees of restaurants, stores and other public businesses from serving, or providing goods to, “any person not complying with the face-covering requirements” as outlined in the original and amended ordinances.

It means that restaurant servers, store clerks, managers and owners are not only allowed to refuse to serve people not wearing masks, they are required to do so.

Further, the ordinance prohibits owners, managers and employees from allowing “a person to remain on its premises in violation of these requirements,” according to the amendment.

It also reiterates language in the original ordinance requiring business owners to post a “face coverings required” notice at each public entrance.

The ordinance came up well into Tuesday night’s fairly lengthy agenda, and generated comments and questions from most members.

Voting against the ordinance were Aldermen at Large Ben Clemons and David Tencza.

The aldermanic personnel and administrative affairs committee, at its meeting Monday, voted 4-1 to recommend its passage by the full board.

Among the numerous other measures taken up Tuesday was the proposal to fund a new position at City Hall for a coordinator for Right-to-Know requests.

Mayor Jim Donchess, who announced to meeting participants he is out of quarantine and back in good health, explained at length the need for such a position. He cited the deluge of requests over the past couple of years, which, he said, have taken several employees away from their primary responsibilities and impacted service to the public.

As for the mask ordinance, city corporation counsel Steve Bolton compared it to similar legislation that’s been on the books for years.

“It’s exactly the same thing as if someone enters a restaurant or a store without wearing shoes,” Bolton said, referring to long-standing laws that require patrons to wear shoes and shirts inside all public businesses.

Ward 2 Alderman Rick Dowd pointed out that the amended ordinance “is not a new ordinance, or a second one … we’re just amending (the original ordinance). People in Nashua I’ve talked with are strongly in favor of this ordinance.

“We are not asking store employees to get into fights with patrons, we’re just asking them to simply point out the sign and tell them they cannot come in without a mask,” Dowd said in response to concerns expressed by several aldermen that business employees’ attempts to enforce the ordinance could cause a confrontation, or even trigger violence.

If patrons give employees “a hard time,” Dowd added, they need to get a store manager involved, and they can call police.”

Tencza, one of the two dissenters, said he agrees that the amendment “does a good job clarifying things, my main concern still is that we’re shifting some of the liability onto businesses,” referring to enforcement.

Alderman at Large Mike O’Brien said that despite his “strong concerns,” he is supporting the measure.

His concerns lie mainly with enforcement, he said, describing a scenario in which a “young woman, all 110 pounds of her, working as a (store) clerk, trying to stop a guy (without a mask) going after his second six-pack of the evening.”

Police Chief Mike Carignan, who took part in the virtual meeting, told aldermen that passage of the amended ordinance would help police do their jobs.

Without it, he said, “it makes it very difficult for us to enforce it,” referring to the mask requirement.

When patrons refuse to wear a mask, “call us, we’ll come and enforce it. That’s what we’re here for,” Carignan said.

Ward 1 Alderman Jan Schmidt said that while she feels the ordinance “is a really good idea,” she also has concerns about confrontations breaking out over the issue, and envisions the possibility of “police officers running from store to store” answering calls for mask violations.

Ward 8 Alderman Skip Cleaver suggested to his fellow board members that he believes “we have a moral obligation to pass this law. It is the least we can do to protect our citizens.”

Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.

Newsletter