One way or another, Williamsville is going to pay for violating the mask mandate imposed by Erie County and New York state.
County Executive Mark Poloncarz confirmed Tuesday during his weekly news briefing that the village is the only local government to be formally sanctioned and fined $300 by the Erie County Health Department for actively and repeatedly flouting the mask-wearing rules.
"They have ... through repeated violations created an unsafe environment by having a public meeting where the public is invited, and the village mayor is not wearing a mask, as well as others," Poloncarz said.
The debate over facts and freedom and rights and restrictions that has roiled the nation since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic has come to a one-square-mile community where complaining about traffic and parking used to rate as the biggest issue.
The fine came to light after Poloncarz was asked about a village announcement via email that it had scheduled a special meeting for 6 p.m. Thursday to "approve the hire of outside counsel to represent the village in a pending legal matter with the Erie County Department of Health." The village's attorney, Charles Grieco, has a conflict of interest because his firm does legal work for the county, said Keaton DePriest, the village director of community development.
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At the Village Board's Jan. 10 meeting, dozens of people filled the auditorium at Village Hall to criticize Covid-19 health measures as infringing on their rights. Most were not wearing masks. They threw their support to Mayor Deborah Rogers, an outspoken opponent of such public health regulations, and said they feared the effects of mask and vaccine mandates more than the effects of the virus.
Others who spoke over a videoconference connection at the board meeting opposed the village adopting an anti-mask mandate resolution.
The resolution argues against any Covid-19 vaccine or mask mandates, asks employees of the Erie County and state health departments not to enter the village to enforce any such mandates and urges passage of state legislation that would require that counties get approval from municipalities for any states of emergency directly affecting those communities.
The resolution was approved in a 3-2 vote.
Fighting the county on this issue is likely to cost Williamsville taxpayers far more than a $300 fine, which is supposed to be paid by Feb. 5. The county stated in its citation that if the village does not agree to pay the $300 fine, it must appear at a hearing where penalties could be as much as $1,000.
While some local government leaders have expressed opposition to the indoor mask mandate imposed by the state and county, Poloncarz said he hopes Williamsville will be the only municipality to ever face a county penalty for willful refusal to abide by the indoor masking order.
"We want people to take this seriously, so yes, the Village of Williamsville was cited," he said, adding that the Omicron variant spreads easily and can cause deaths.
Matthew Etu said he is resigning effective immediately because of a “toxic and destructive” environment created by Williamsville Mayor Deborah Rogers.
In a statement, Rogers declined to comment other than to refer to Thursday's meeting.
The county action taken against Williamsville is unusual. Since the latest county and state mask mandates have been adopted, the Erie County Health Department has taken a softer, educational approach to enforcement.
But in light of the vocal opposition by Rogers and what Poloncarz described as repeated refusals by the village to enforce mask-wearing policies, the county sent health inspectors to the last meeting to assess the situation. A citation was issued against the village Jan. 12.
Prior to that, Health Department spokeswoman Kara Kane said, the Health Department sent correspondence to the village on Jan. 7 in response to a public complaint about the village's lack of compliance with mask-wearing requirements.
Kane said the Jan. 7 letter was technically not a "warning." However, it states that "buildings/businesses" will be monitored by department staff and that "repetitive and wilful (sic) violations" of the county's orders can result in penalties.
