EASTHAMPTON — Continuing with virtual meetings, plastic straw usage and a $6.4 million bond for an energy contracts were all on the agenda at a Wednesday night City Council meeting.
The council passed an ordinance last fall banning the use of numerous single-use plastics in the city. While straws were not completely banned under this legislation, the ordinance established an opt-in system where people had to ask for straws, rather than having restaurants supply them to all patrons.
The council removed the section on straws from the ordinance, but kept the subject in a subcommittee in case councilors later want to restore the guidelines.
City Councilor Lindsay Rothschild said the opt-in system “places an undue burden on people with disabilities” and could force people to disclose a disability if they want to drink in public.
Councilor Owen Zaret, who introduced the original ordinance banning single-use plastics, noted that anyone can ask for a straw under the ordinance in place, which he said prevents people from disclosing a disability by asking for a straw.
The proposed amendment drew extensive debate among councilors, most of whom favored removing the straw regulation.
Rothschild read a letter from Commission on Disabilities member Jeff Brown, who wrote that straws are “an essential part of daily life” for some people with disabilities, including people who have muscle spasticity, difficulty holding or bending towards a cup, or difficulty swallowing.
“Eliminating (plastic straws) is a step backward for disability rights,” Brown wrote, adding that finding a flexible alternative to plastic straws would lessen the environmental impact of the straws while providing a favorable option for people with disabilities. Biodegradable straws are a poor solution because they easily fall apart, Brown said.
The meeting was originally scheduled to take place in person with hybrid opportunities at City Hall, but was switched to an online-only meeting with COVID-19 cases once again on the rise. The council, which will not meet again until September, has yet to decide whether its next meeting will take place virtually, in-person or on a hybrid basis.
At the meeting, councilors noted that some residents have difficulty accessing virtual meetings, but acknowledged that with the highly contagious delta variant of the coronavirus on the rise, gatherings are once again becoming public health risks.
Mayor Nicole LaChapelle said she favors meetings remaining all-virtual for the time being, and would also support remaining virtual until the state’s recently extended deadline in April 2022.
“In person, we have a health risk that’s really undefined,” LaChapelle told the Gazette.
LaChapelle also raised concerns that distancing measures at in-person meetings, such as six feet of space between attendees, could force the city to limit who can participate in person.
At the meeting, the council also reviewed an energy service performance contract, which LaChapelle brought before the City Council earlier in the summer. At the time, the contract was moved to the Finance Committee.
In a letter, Finance Committee Chairman Dan Rist said the contract, which would require a $6.5 million bond, will serve as a “legacy” project, and “one that will leave the city in a healthy and energy efficient state in the years to come.”
Among numerous changes to the city’s energy usage, the plan would establish solar panel canopies over the Police Department parking lot and solar panels on city hall. It also presents “a major upgrade to our energy and HVAC systems that is quite wide-ranging,” Rist wrote.