Board of Aldermen 3-24-2020 Page 11
to gain but can we go back to the buses because something just came in on e-mail. The announcement
from the State, it is pretty interesting. When the Governor was talking today or whoever had their press
conference, it turns out that an individual rode on a Concord Coach Line and was infected by Coronavirus
and rode from Concord to Logan and a couple of other trips. It has been discovered that this person had
Corona virus. So now any person who is on those buses and has developed symptoms should stay away
from all other people and immediately contact their healthcare provider.
Now the point is that they might know who are on these Concord buses but in our case, on the fixed route
system, we would have no way of knowing who was on, it would be impossible to track. So | just wanted to
add that Madam President, just to demonstrate why this bus step | think was the right thing to do. In any
event, | apologize for digressing. But | think | answered Alderman O’Brien’s question.
President Wilshire
Anyone further, any discussion further on suspending the rules for a second reading?
Alderwoman Lu
Thank you. | understand my colleague addressing what it may be limited to but | think without careful
review of how the contract stands as it is as opposed to the 3 pages of changes, ok the one page of
changes that it involves, | don’t want to recap it as it is just a change to this or it is just a change to only
that. And | don’t feel comfortable | think we all know that we can have meetings remotely now. If it comes
in for first reading, | would think it would be somewhat of an unusual thing to go to a second reading in the
same night. And | just feel strongly that people that want to weigh in should be able to read in on this.
Thank you.
President Wilshire
You are welcome. Alderman Klee.
Alderman Klee
My question is to Attorney Bolton, can you hear me? You can hear me, OK, | can’t hear me, so my
question to you is this still has to be a Public Meeting, even though they are doing it remotely, we still have
to allow the public in so we would have to set something up like this or is that not?
Steve Bolton Corporation Counsel
| hope | am audible now. This is a public meeting. If you send this to a Committee, the Committee Meeting
would have to be done in public, which it could be done in a similar manner that we are using this evening.
You can table it at the Board level and discuss it at the next Full Board Meeting. It is really up to the Board
how it wants to proceed from here. | guess some of you are inclined to pass it this evening and that would
be appropriate also.
President Wilshire
Alderman Klee, did you have something further?
Alderman Klee
No | just wanted to make it clear that we would have to a public, so someone physically would have to be
here so that the public, if they did choose to come, could speak. Because it sounds like my colleagues are
looking to hear from those people.
