Black Mountain to follow Buncombe County mask order
Mayor reverses order to align with indoor face covering requirement
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
August 20, 2021
The Town of Black Mountain is aligning with a Buncombe County order making masks mandatory in indoor public places. The decision came after an Aug. 20 special call meeting. Photo by Fred McCormick
Black Mountain will require masks to be worn indoors, following an Aug. 20 special call meeting of the town council.
The mayor’s order to align with a mandate passed earlier in the week by the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners will go into effect Saturday, Aug. 21.
The county commission in a 6-1 vote, Aug. 18, required face coverings to be worn in indoor public settings in unincorporated areas of the county. Black Mountain Mayor Larry Harris did not direct the town to follow the order, stating that he preferred to “try the route of voluntary compliance.”
Friday’s meeting allowed the public to direct comments to the town council on the matter. Nine residents offered their opinions on a mask mandate for Black Mountain, with five of those comments opposed to the order. Emails to the town council, according to Harris and Councilmember Pam King, were overwhelmingly in support of the mandate.
“The ones that I read with more careful attention were from business owners,” King said. “Merchants in Black Mountain have to deal with the public on a regular basis. The vast majority of them asked us to pass the mandate.”
Each of the five members of the council addressed the issue during the meeting. Ryan Stone believed that aligning with the county’s mask mandate was “in the best interest of the community.”
“We can agree to disagree on how we go about this,” he said. “My action today in support of aligning with the county is due to the recommendation of the county health department and the data that we’ve seen showing that masks will help blunt this surge and get us back to the normalcy we’re seeking.”
Archie Pertiller, Jr. agreed, citing his concerns for the health of elderly citizens and children who are not yet eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
In the more than 60 emails received by the board, according to Doug Hay, local businesses consistently expressed two primary concerns.
“One was protecting their employees and customers who come to their shops and restaurants,” he said. “The other was that they’re really worried about another shutdown. If the numbers get worse, that would impact them far more than putting on masks.”
The final member of the council to address the public was Bill Christy, who called the issue “complicated and emotional.”
“I think it puts people in unfair opposition at times,” he said. “I believe that most of us want the best for everybody, and we’re just trying to make the best decisions we can.”
With all five town council members in support of aligning with the county mandate, Harris directed the town manager to change his original order.
“Just from what we’ve seen in the room today, there are a lot of different opinions about everything that’s going on in our community, county, state and country,” Harris said. “I think it’s very good we were able to have this meeting today, hearing from people with different opinions and perspectives.”
The county’s order, which declared a local state of emergency, requires face coverings to be worn indoors in business establishments, offices, while utilizing public transportation vehicles and facilities and any indoor place the public is invited or allowed to enter or gather. It includes restaurants, bars and other food establishments, unless customers are actively eating or drinking.
The order applies to all people 5 years of age and older, unless an exception applies. Owners and operators of indoor public spaces are strongly recommended to implement social distancing practices. Religious gatherings, funerals and weddings are exempt for the requirement, which will remain in effect until Tuesday, Sept. 30, or until repealed or replaced.