At a special Mobridge City Council meeting held Tuesday night via the Zoom app, the council passed the first reading of the ordinance below. The second reading will be on Monday, March 30th.
ORDINANCE NO. 982
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBRIDGE, SOUTH
DAKOTA DECLARING A HEALTH EMERGENCY AND LIMITING PUBLIC
GATHERINGS WITHIN THE CITY
AND WITHIN ONE MILE OF THE CITY LIMITS
WHEREAS, the City of Mobridge has the authority pursuant to SDCL 9-29-1 and 9-32-1 to
pass ordinances for the purpose of promoting the health, safety, morals and general welfare, of
the community and to do what may be necessary or expedient for the promotion of health or the
suppression of disease; and
WHEREAS, an outbreak of the COVID-19 disease, which is caused by the novel coronavirus
SARS-CoV-2 (the “virus”), has been confirmed in more than 100 countries, including the United
States; and
WHEREAS, COVID-19 is a severe respiratory disease caused by the virus transmitted by
person-to-person contact, or by contact with surfaces contaminated by the virus. In some cases,
especially among older adults and persons with serious underlying health conditions, virus
infection can result in serious illness requiring hospitalization, admission to an intensive care
unit, and death; and
WHEREAS, the World Health Organization (WHO), the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC), and the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
have declared the outbreak of the virus causing the COVID-19 disease as a public health
emergency; and
WHEREAS, on March 13, 2020, President Donald Trump declared a national emergency in
response to the global pandemic of COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, on the same day, Governor Kristi Noem, issued Executive Order 2020-04 which
declared a state of emergency to exist in the State of South Dakota in response to the spread of
the virus causing the COVID-19 disease; and
WHEREAS, cases of infection from the virus causing the COVID-19 disease have been
confirmed in the State of South Dakota, and cases of community transmission are reasonably
suspected to exist; and
WHEREAS, the CDC and health experts have recommended social distancing to slow the
spread of the virus causing the COVID-19 disease; and
WHEREAS, social distancing is a method of slowing down or stopping the spread of a
contagious disease by reducing the probability of contact between infected persons and those not
infected in order to minimize disease transmission; and
WHEREAS, in response to the need to implement social distancing, all schools in the State of
South Dakota have been closed for at least two weeks; and
WHEREAS, on March 16th, the White House issued guidance recommending that gatherings of
more than ten (10) people be avoided and that people avoid eating or drinking at bars,
restaurants, and food courts; and
WHEREAS, the guidance issued by the White House further recommended that in states with
evidence of community transmission, bars, restaurants, food courts, gyms, and other indoor and
outdoor venues where people congregate should be closed; and
WHEREAS, many states and communities across the country have already implemented the
White House recommendations by ordering all bars, restaurants, food courts, gyms, and other
indoor and outdoor venues where people congregate be closed until the public health emergency
is over; and
WHEREAS, the failure to successfully implement social distancing will likely result in higher
numbers of infected individuals and has the potential to overwhelm the capacity of the City’s
health care providers; and
WHEREAS, it is important that control measures be taken to reduce or slow down the spread of
the virus in order to protect the health and safety of the City’s residents, especially for seniors
and those with underlying health conditions that make them particularly vulnerable to the
COVID-19 disease.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED, by the City of Mobridge, South Dakota:
1. Effective at 12:00 a.m. on April 2, 2020, all restaurants, food courts, food service locations,
coffee houses, bars, breweries, distilleries, wineries, clubs, cafes and other similar places of
public accommodation offering food and beverages for on-site consumption, including any
alcohol licensees with on-sale privileges, are closed to on-site/on-sale patrons. These
businesses may continue to operate in order to provide take-out, delivery, curbside service,
drive-thru service. Any business continuing to operate in order to provide off- site service
should implement procedures to ensure social distancing and operate in compliance with
federal and state health guidance in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
2. Effective at 12:00 a.m. on April 2, 2020, all churches, recreational facilities, public pools,
health clubs, athletic facilities and theaters, including movie theaters and music or
entertainment venues are directed to close and cease operations.
3. Effective at 12:00 a.m. on April 2, 2020, all hookah lounges, cigar bars, vaping lounges or
other similar business which allow for on-site consumption are directed to cease allowing onsite consumption, but may continue to offer products for sale to consume off-site under the
same conditions as bars and restaurants outlined in paragraph #1.
4. Effective at 12:00 a.m. on April 2, 2020, all pool halls, video game arcades, video lottery
casino operations, indoor recreational or entertainment are directed to close and cease
operations.
5. Effective at 12:00 a.m. on April 2, 2020, all other retail and service businesses in which more
than ten (10) people are gathered or permitted to gather in the facility are directed to close and
cease operations.
6. The prohibitions and closures in this order do not apply to the following businesses:
a. Places of public accommodation that offer food and beverages for off-site consumption,
including grocery stores, food markets, retail and service businesses in which less than ten
(10) people are gathered or permitted to gather in the facility, pharmacies, drug stores, and
food pantries, other than any portion of such business which would be subject to the
requirements of paragraph #1.
b. Room service in hotels.
c. Health care facilities, residential care facilities, congregate care facilities, and
correctional facilities.
d. Crisis shelters, homeless shelters, soup kitchens, or other similar institutions
e. Municipal Airport
f. Any emergency facilities necessary for the response to the current public health
emergency or any other community emergency or disaster.
7. This ordinance shall remain in effect until such time as it is amended, suspended, reinstated or
repealed by Resolution of the Mobridge City Council.
8. Any violation of this ordinance is subject to the general penalty provisions applicable to all
other violations of the Mobridge City Ordinances.
9. This Ordinance shall apply to all persons, facilities and locations within the City of Mobridge
and within 1 mile of the corporate limits of the City of Mobridge.
10.Each day a violation of this ordinance is allowed to occur is considered a separate offense
committed by the person(s) in charge of the facility in violation.
BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, that, pursuant to SDCL 9-19-13, this ordinance is necessary due
to a health emergency, the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety, and
welfare of the City and shall become effective immediately upon passage and publication.
APPROVED:_______________________
Mayor
Passed First Reading:__________________
Passed Second Reading:_________________
Adopted:_______________________________
Published:_____________________________
Effective:_____________________________
ATTEST:_____________________
Finance Officer
(SEAL)