Face coverings are now required for members of the public in some city buildings, according to an alert on the City of Concord website posted on Tuesday.
City employees are not required to wear masks during work hours unless they interact with the public or are in close contact with other workers.
Masks covering the nose and mouth must be worn in the library and in city community and recreation facilities like the Green Street gym or Everett Arena, except for when people are “actively playing in a sport, taking part in a fitness class, eating or drinking or showering in a locker room.”
Performers inside City-operated community centers and gyms do not need to wear masks while performing. The requirement for members of the public to wear a mask does not apply to Concord City Hall.
“While engaged in an activity that does not require a face covering as identified in these rules, persons outside of the same household are strongly encouraged to remain three feet apart from other others to the greatest extent possible,” the policy said.
With the exception of firefighters, city employees are now required to wear face coverings when entering and leaving city buildings or while interacting with the public, according to an email from City Public Information Officer Stefanie Breton.
Staff must also wear masks while doing indoor inspections and while inside a vehicle with another person on city business. Masks are not required when workers are at their own desks or at least three feet from coworkers.
The Concord Fire Department currently allows employees on 24-hour shifts to remove their masks at fire stations, since coworkers are considered “household contacts” for isolation and quarantine protocols following a COVID-19 exposure.
Last week the City Council voted against a city-wide mask requirement for indoor spaces, instead passing a resolution that encouraged Concord residents to wear masks indoors, get vaccinated and follow other CDC recommendations to prevent the spread of COVID. The same resolution also authorized City Manager Tom Aspell to make rules about mask wearing in city-owned buildings, although he had the ability to do so previously.
Nashua and Manchester currently require members of the public to don face coverings inside public buildings. Beginning in August, Concord recommended that masks be worn inside city buildings, but did not make mask-wearing mandatory.
The new policies for mask-wearing inside city buildings and for city staff are in effect until further notice.