COVID case forces closure of city building, cancellation of Ferry council meeting

MARTINS FERRY -- Wednesday night's Martins Ferry City Council meeting was canceled due to a case of COVID-19 being identified inside the building.

Council President Kristine Davis said the meeting was canceled a couple hours before its scheduled start time of 6 p.m. She said the city building has been closed and will undergo a thorough cleaning, since the infected person had been in several parts of the structure.

Davis said the city is in the process of becoming able to hold meetings online to give members the option of attending future meetings remotely. She said she likely will go to the city building council chambers during those meetings in case any member still wants to attend in person.

Because of the ongoing pandemic, some local municipalities switched to remote meetings in an effort to keep their members and the public safe from the virus.

In Ohio, state orders related to indoor gatherings and social distancing also forced government bodies to become creative with their methods of holding open meetings.

Martins Ferry City Council for a time held its meetings at the Rec Center gym, where there was plenty of room to spread out. However, after the Rec Center was permitted by the state to reopen, council was forced to go back to its chambers again.

Since only a small number of people were permitted inside the actual chamber, the city set up a computer monitor outside the door where people could watch and listen.

For some, it is still difficult to hear what is being said. Council still permits residents with questions or comments to take turns entering the chamber to speak.

Other municipalities, such as the village of Bellaire, are now using online platforms for village council members to attend meetings remotely if they choose. The meetings are also being broadcast via the village's new Facebook page. During their last meeting, council had technical difficulties getting the live Facebook button to work. Treasurer Tom Sable said Wednesday that the council will have technical assistance tonight to make sure the meeting can be seen live on its Facebook page, "Village of Bellaire Council." The Bellaire meeting begins at 6 p.m. today.

"Mr. Gust (tech support for village of Bellaire) will be present for this meeting on Thursday, February 4, 2021, and, going forward, he will operate our live video feed via Facebook for us from his home on the first and third Thursday of the month," Sable said. "We feel this will solve the broadcast problems we have been having in the past and better serve our community, during the COVID times of restrictions."