In what may have been their last face-to-face meeting for the foreseeable future, members of the Jackson Board of Aldermen Friday passed an ordinance permitting them to conduct "virtual" meetings rather than risk exposure to or the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

"We don't want to congregate our citizens or our elected officials (in the board meeting room) during the coronavirus situation," explained Jackson city attorney Tom Ludwig.

City officials hope to have a web-based platform in place in time for the board's next scheduled meeting on April 6. "The plan is to get this up and running as soon as possible," Ludwig said.

Joan Evans, the city's information technology director, and City Clerk Liza Walker have been tasked with identifying an appropriate system that will allow the mayor, aldermen and other city officials to conduct meetings online while simultaneously allowing the public to view and potentially participate in the meetings via internet enabled devices.

"We should be able to have something by the end of next week," Evans told the aldermen.

According to Ludwig, the ordinance adopted at Friday's meeting will allow the board to meet online without violating Missouri's open meetings statutes, also known as the "Sunshine Law," because it requires public access to those meetings as well as adequate public notice of any online meetings.

Ludwig also serves as Perryville's city attorney where a similar ordinance has been adopted.

Cape Girardeau city attorney Eric Cunningham told the Missourian last week the topic of "virtual meetings" has been discussed by city officials, but he does not believe an ordinance allowing them is necessary in Cape Girardeau.

"I think state statutes already give us that ability," he said.

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