Cape Girardeau City Council holds virtual meeting, discusses COVID-19 changes

Abiding by stay-at-home order in Missouri and in accordance with health advisories to maintain social distancing, the Cape Girardeau City Council held its first April meeting Monday via Zoom video call with some council members appearing in video form and others appearing by audio only.

Although technical difficulties hindered a live broadcast of the meeting, residents were still able to virtually speak before the council by joining the Zoom call, but no one did so Monday night.

A video recording of the Zoom call was uploaded to the city’s YouTube account Tuesday. During opening reports, many council members made statements regarding the city’s recent responses to the coronavirus.

According to Mayor Bob Fox, about 40 officials from various local organizations participate in a conference call every morning at 8:30 a.m. to receive daily updates regarding what’s happening nearby and around the state.

“Really, in Missouri, we’re not too bad off,” Fox said. “There are places where there are [personal protective equipment] shortages — St. Louis, mostly. But for the most part, our state is in pretty good shape and our city is in pretty good shape.”

Ward 4 Councilman Robbie Guard encouraged local small-business owners to discuss Small Business Administration disaster relief loans, particularly loans for payroll protection.

City manager Scott Meyer gave a brief overview of how the City of Cape Girardeau has transformed its operations within a matter of days to adhere with regulations, and reinforced the city’s commitment to provide critical services.

“We don’t have a choice not to continue our businesses,” Meyer said. “We are one of those essential services; it’s incredibly important that people have water, that they have sewer, that they have trash.”

The mayor commended local organizations for quickly adapting to work-from-home conditions and virtual meetings, but encouraged residents to maintain their commitment to minimizing the spread of the coronavirus.

Ward 6 Councilwoman Stacy Kinder encouraged people to remain in touch with local agencies and organizations, and to remain on the lookout for possibly misleading information.

Fox also thanked health care workers on the front lines of the fight against COVID-19, and reminded everyone of the Stay Home Missouri order and new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines to wear a face mask in public.

“It still takes individual responsibility to do social distancing and maintain cleanliness,” Fox said during the video conference call.

Doubling down on Fox’s reminder, Ward 2 Councilwoman Shelly Moore offered to personally make a face mask for anyone in need.

Ward 5 Councilman Ryan Essex encouraged members of the public to abide by social distancing guidelines, but still remember to check in on friends and family.

“Continuing to be connected to people is still very important — family, friends, colleagues,” Essex said. “I would just encourage everyone to use the technology we have at our fingertips to stay connected with everyone.”