LUBBOCK, Texas — Mayor Dan Pope announced Monday afternoon that the City Council had a proposal to limit public gatherings inside the city to 200 people or fewer. He did so as Texas and the city deal with a coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
The City Council met at 5:00 p.m. in an emergency meeting, and approved the limits unanimously.
Pope said there have been no confirmed cases in the city, but that the measures are proactive and preemptive. The city manager said that the proposal would go into effect 24 hours after it is approved by the city council — meaning, it goes into effect Tuesday at 5:00 pm.
Exceptions were made in the proposal for Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport, public and private schools, licensed daycares, weddings, funerals, museums, places of worship, bus stops and other “places of transit,” office spaces, hotels, grocery stores, malls, retail establishments, hospitals & clinics, and jails (or other detention centers).
The mayor has authority to make adjustments to the limitation on gatherings if the situation changes. The city council will reconsider the issue on April 14.
