Whitefish tightens COVID restrictions for Halloween weekend

The Whitefish City Council has approved temporary COVID-19 restrictions for the Halloween weekend as infections continue to rise in Flathead County and officials worry about the potential for a "super spreader" event.

After two hours of discussion and public comment Monday evening, the council voted 5-1 to pass an emergency ordinance that will impose new restrictions on people, businesses and houses of worship this Friday and Saturday.

The rules will be in addition to masking and social distancing requirements ordered by Gov. Steve Bullock. They won't apply to schools or child-care facilities.

Under the ordinance, anyone who violates the rules could receive infractions with fines of up to $300 for first offenses and up to $500 for repeat offenses. The city also may suspend or revoke business licenses for violations that occur on their premises.

The ordinance notes that Whitefish "traditionally experiences a significant influx of visitors who arrive to celebrate the Halloween holiday." As of Oct. 9, it states, 10 long-term care facilities in Flathead County were grappling with coronavirus outbreaks, "limiting the ability of hospitals to discharge patients into such facilities."

At least 14 local bars and restaurants had experienced outbreaks as well, and other outbreaks in the county "had been linked to individuals attending large events such as church services, political events, weddings and trade shows," the ordinance states.

Some council members said they were spurred to action by a lack of enforcement of existing restrictions by county officials, and by the Flathead City-County Health Board's recent decision to scrap a plan for tighter restrictions on crowd sizes.

"The county has deferred it to us, in my opinion," council member Steve Qunell said. "This has been pushed into our laps, and it's our turn to take leadership on this. So we need to do something. I think this is about the minimum we can do."

Under the ordinance:

No public or private gatherings larger than 10 people will be permitted unless they can maintain 6-foot social distancing.

Restaurants, bars, breweries, distilleries and casinos will have to operate at 75% capacity, limit seating to six people per table and prohibit patrons from sitting or standing at bars or counters.

Restaurants, bars and casinos will have to close their doors and have all patrons out by 11:30 p.m., an hour earlier than currently permitted.

Houses of worship will be allowed to host groups larger than 10 but will have to comply with masking and social distancing requirements and also limit total capacity.

The ordinance passed with an amendment allowing 75% capacity in businesses, which is in line with current restrictions. The original ordinance would have restricted capacity to 50% this weekend.

"I think it's a very reasonable approach to limit the spread of COVID and safeguard our communities and also safeguard our businesses and our economy," Flathead County Interim Health Officer Tamalee Robinson told the council before the amendment was introduced.

On Monday, Robinson said, the county had 16 people hospitalized with COVID-19, eight of whom were county residents. The county had confirmed 3,084 cases since the start of the pandemic, and 651 of those infections were still active Monday.

"We've had 26 deaths," Robinson said. "We had three deaths just last week."

Other hospitals in Montana are at or near capacity and sending COVID-19 patients to Flathead County, threatening to overwhelm local resources.

The city's restrictions come after the council sent a letter to the Health Board on Friday, criticizing board members who have disregarded the recommendations of public health experts.

"Your inability to enact vital ordinances to keep our county healthy puts communities such as ours in the position of having to consider enacting restrictions to slow the spread of COVID-19 without any county support," the letter said. "Again, we must unify. We need a clear, coordinated approach to bring this surge under control rather than a patchwork of regulations and enforcement."

The council is expected to consider longer-lasting restrictions during its next meeting Nov. 2.

Council member Andrew Feury said Monday he was initially inclined not to support the Halloween restrictions but had heard "overwhelming" support from city residents.

"And I think that Halloween does present a clear and present danger to the community and the county as a whole," Feury said. "And I think that this is restrictive, but it's not overly restrictive. People are still going to be able to have their doors open. They're still going to be able to generate some revenue."

Whitefish Police Chief Bill Dial said officers will be walking through bars over the weekend, documenting violations and forwarding them to the city's legal department.

"It'll be much like we've done in the past – you know, try to move people along," Dial said. "As far as the social distancing and the masking, it will be pretty difficult to enforce. However, we will put forth every effort to try to do that."

Dial said it will be important to dissuade people from flooding into the downtown area for holiday celebrations.

"It's going to be a daunting task if we do have people who do show up and are not going to have places to go," he said.

City Manager Dana Smith said some businesses in downtown Whitefish have elected not to promote costume and trick-or-treating events that typically draw large crowds around Halloween.

"Obviously there will still be services available, but the big party atmosphere will be gone," Smith said.

Robinson, the interim health officer, didn't identify bar and restaurant patrons as primary spreaders of the coronavirus. But she said there have been significant outbreaks among local bar and restaurant workers in their 20s, 30s and 40s.

Council member Ryan Hennen, who cast the lone vote against the Halloween restrictions, said he felt "torn" because most businesses in Whitefish are striving to comply with "what seem to be ever-changing guidelines and restrictions."

"Unfortunately, I think we just have a few businesses that, for whatever reason, feel like they don't have to follow the regulations," Hennen said, noting that state health officials are suing several Flathead County establishments for flouting restrictions. "And they're paying the price now because the state has come down on them, and they're going to have to hire a lawyer and defend that in court."

Reporter Chad Sokol can be reached at 758-4434 or csokol@dailyinterlake.com