Board of Aldermen 12-22-2020 Page 27
This is vitally important, what’s also vitally important are jobs and we have to make sure that the people
who are living and working in our community are not put out on the street because they can’t afford it. That
they are not going hungry or their children have to suffer because of this. This is important right now.
If | was a member of the Board of Health | would ask for this Ordinance, | would probably ask for more
because | think that according to all the experts, all the doctors, and epidemiology, the studies that | have
studied deeply proves that any time you are within a few feet of another human who might have this
disease, you will be open to it. And it could go through you and you could be fine but you could pass it on
to somebody else and that somebody else could pass it on to somebody’s grandmother and that person will
die. That’s not fair. So we have an option at this point, we can follow what the Board of Health has told us
which would be hard on a lot of people. We could ask that the folks down in DC do their job and make sure
that people who are unable to work in restaurants because they have people at home who can’t get sick
with this because it will be a disaster. We could ask our Governor to make sure that there is enough
support for us to take good care of everybody and the people who would like to go out can continue to do
so as long as they follow the rules.
Now when | was speaking with someone on the Board of Health, the question came up that are all the
restaurants and bars and such a problem? And they said, “No, no there’s a few places that act more like
nightclubs where people will stand shoulder to shoulder with no mask on to enjoy their drinks”. And this is
the part of the City that really has to take responsibility at this point. We can’t continue to close down
places like Martha’s and Boston Billiards at night simply at an arbitrary time because we know that a few
people may come in from Massachusetts yes, but mostly it'll be people who were there having a great time
just passing this back and forth. | understand 100 people in our City tested positive today, that’s because
people aren’t taking care. This is science, it’s worth paying good attention to. So until DC and Concord
catch up with us | am asking that we will make some changes in the mask law and we will ask for
punishment of the places that do not follow protocol and otherwise we allow businesses like Martha’s and
Boston Billiards and the other organizations that behave in an adult and careful manner that they should
continue. So | can’t support this and thank you for your time.
President Wilshire
Thank you, Alderman Schmidt. Anyone else? Alderwoman Kelly?
Alderwoman Kelly
Thank you and thank you for everyone who came last night and has joined us this evening, it’s definitely
been eye opening hearing from everybody. | want to commend the business owners in Nashua and
throughout the country. It’s not easy being a business owner right now, especially if you are in hospitality.
My brother is a chef in Chicago and they closed all indoor dining so he has since had to find new work so |
know how hard this is. It’s not easy for us either, it definitely is a tough conversation and we hear it from all
sides. We've heard from people last night, we’ve heard from the Public Health Board and where | come
down on this is | feel very strongly that we need to continue to support our Board of Health and their
recommendations. Unfortunately we don’t have a national approach so that means at the local and state
level we have to make these decisions and listen to the experts who are telling us what they think can help.
If you told me 2020 was going to be a pandemic | would have laughed at you.
But | am not a scientist and | am not a doctor and | feel very strongly that the people, all across our City are
employed to tell us and advise us whether it’s health or the wastewater treatment plant have been really
well thought through and put in those positions. And so the United States has the highest level of COVID-
19 and we are here because so many people have refused to listen to doctors until now or refused to listen
to Public Health Officials. And so | know it is not going to be easy.
