Fort Myers city council members meet again to discuss a mask mandate inside businesses

In another attempt to encourage businesses to make you wear a mask while you’re inside, Fort Myers city council will once again take up the topic of face masks at a meeting on Monday.

Fort Myers city council will discuss a new resolution that will encourage businesses to adhere to CDC guidelines. That means all employees and customers will wear a face mask while inside.

The keyword there is “encourage”, that’s why this resolution sits well with some local business owners in Downtown Fort Myers.

The resolution would follow the CDC guidelines for businesses, where employees and customers have to wear a face mask or covering and maintain social distancing.

The owner of First Street Restaurant and Bar and the owner of Mason’s Famous Lobster Roll both said they’re ok if the resolution passes because it’s not a mandate.

“A recommendation would be fine and even if there is a mandate on wearing masks anywhere, it would not make any sense for a restaurant, it’s just too much of a stretch,” said Basil Babamov, owner of First Street Restaurant and Bar.

“As a customer, I guess encouraging is OK but I don’t think they should make everybody wear a mask or not to wear a mask. I feel like that’s everybody’s personal decision whether they like to do it. If they pass this I guess we will encourage everybody but we are not going to require every customer to wear a mask. It’s all up to them,” said Yuriy Fedoriv, owner of Masons Famous Lobster Rolls.

If the resolution passes, it will become effective immediately on Monday. Trust WINK News to let you know when the decision is made.