I wanted to let you know the two things that happened this morning.
1) The City Council election has been postponed by unanimous vote from May 2nd and will now be held on Tuesday, November 3rd.
2) The City Council (in a vote of 4-1, myself against), put a shelter in place order for the City of Waxahachie, from 11:59 PM on Thursday, March 26, 2020 through 11:59 PM on April 16, 2020. A copy of the order can be found here: http://www.waxahachie.com/Amended%20Order%20of%20David%20Hill%20-%20COVID-19%20Virus%2003242020%20v.5.pdf
This was a hard decision for all of us and I'd like to tell you some of the reasons why I voted against it. While I know that not everyone will feel the same way that I do, I did what I truly felt was in the best interest of all Waxahachie residents and at the same time, uphold the Constitution, which is what I swore to do in my oath of office.
A.) Those who are already VOLUNTARILY doing a shelter-in-place (like our family has been), will continue doing so under the order, but those who won't follow the suggestions now, probably will not follow them during the order.
B.) This will cause undo strain on the Police Dept. due to calls related to gatherings. I just saw a report that Dallas PD has had 800 calls for service due to gatherings since their shelter-in-place order has gone into effect.
C.) We are already under the shelter-in-place (SIP) order from Ellis County, so issuing one of our own is redundant.
D.) People cannot even do Bible studies in small groups under this order due to it being so restrictive.
E.) This city order demands that nobody gather in groups of any number, if outside of your home unit. It doesn't use 10. It says "All public or private gatherings of ANY NUMBER of people occurring outside a single household or living unit are prohibited, except as otherwise provided herein."
F.) "All businesses operating within the City of Waxahachie, except Essential Businesses as defined in below in Section 2, are required to cease all activities at facilities located within the City. For clarity, businesses may continue operations consisting exclusively of employees or contractors performing activities at their own residences (i.e. working from home)." What is this going to do to our small businesses who are already adapting and overcoming the challenges COVID-19 has posed?
There are more reasons, but I hope that it at least gives you the perspective as to some of the rules and why I voted against it.
I do truly love this City and the people in it and don't want to see anyone sick or worse. Please continue helping each other and follow all the guidelines as established by the CDC. We WILL get through this together because we are #HachieStrong!
Be well,
Melissa Olson
(text) 817-507-5162
molson@waxahachie.com
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