Mayor Allen Schneider

Disagreements about the safety and implications of public gatherings arose among Riverside City Council members during their Aug. 3 regular meeting.

Councilperson Jeanine Redlinger voiced opposition at the meeting to city-approved public gatherings going forward, including a request for the Riverside Area Community Club (RACC) to host a demolition derby in Hall Park, proposed by event organizer Kevin Rodgers.

“I feel like it’s irresponsible and dangerous activity right now, the numbers have gone up, I don’t think recommending (masks or social distancing) is going to make anything happen,” Redlinger said. “I think the people that will come to it are people that believe they are immune, and they’re not going to wear any kind of mask. I don’t think they will follow any kind of social distancing, there’s no way he can make them.”

Councilperson Edgar McGuire said he thought decisions about pandemic-related risks were better left up to individuals.

“I think it’s more of a personal choice,” McGuire said. “If you go to this, you know what risks you’re taking, and if you don’t want to take risks, then you stay home.”

Redlinger disagreed.

“You bring those risks to town and then they get taken home,” she said in response to McGuire. “It’s not just the people that are there that are at risk, it’s the people that they will be around later, that’s how a pandemic works.

“I think we’re responsible for safety of all the citizens and I just don’t see this as a good idea for the whole town. I don’t want to spoil anybody’s fun, but I think life is more important than fun.”

Mayor Allen Schneider said council approval did not necessarily set the event in stone.

“We can approve it now, but everybody understands that the situation is fluid,” he said. “There’s no guarantee that a change in situation wouldn’t cause us to rescind that.”

The debate was rekindled later in the meeting, when the council discussed approval for a “Movie and Meal Night,” also organized by RACC.

Kevin Meller, another RACC event organizer, said the event would be conducive to social distancing and framed it as a low risk “dry run,” which could inform future decisions about public gatherings during the pandemic.

“We also need a chance to learn how to do events in the COVID age because there’s a very good possibility that if we don’t have a vaccine this winter, we’re going to have to figure this out and be doing things next year,” Meller said at the meeting. “At the end of the day, if the city council doesn’t feel comfortable with doing this sort of event, I respect that decision.”

Although Meller said the event would include social distancing and require masks for volunteers, Redlinger voiced similar concerns to the demolition derby.

“I do appreciate your efforts, but a lot of people I’ve talked to don’t think it’s the right time to have gatherings,” she said after declaring her vote against the event.

The city council voted 4-1 and 3-1 to approve the demolition derby and Movie and Meal Night, respectively. Redlinger voted against both motions and Councilperson Tom Sexton abstained from the latter due to his membership in the church that would serve meals at the event.