SOUTH PADRE ISLAND — Local city officials are continuing to make changes in response to the coronavirus.
During a special emergency meeting held Thursday afternoon, South Padre Island city council members approved an amendment to its emergency management order and recommendations.
The decision was made a few hours after separate coronavirus-related meetings were held Thursday morning by Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino, Jr. and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.
The city’s amendment will mandate several rules such as closing movie theaters, nature centers, amusement parks, gyms, tattoo parlors, hair and nail salons, barber shops and massage parlors.
To view the full list of rules, visit https://tinyurl.com/t4ra3to.
“Our hope is that of the Federal and State Government; that by imposing these measures quickly and firmly, we will help bring this national emergency to an end quickly and help revitalize the economy we all enjoy as soon as possible,” city of SPI public information officer Angelique “Nikki” Soto stated in an email.
The amendment will be mandated today at 10 p.m.
A violation of the order is a Class C misdemeanor that is punishable by a fine not to exceed $500.
During the meeting, Mayor Patrick McNulty said what’s having to happen is heartbreaking, but as it’s pointed out continuously, the virus is real.
“It could have a real long-term effect on our economy and what everyone is trying to do is try to get ahead of it when we were behind it for so long,” he said. “The real feeling is that if we take these harsh measures for the next two weeks, then we can really turn the tide on that. I hope the experts are correct on this most definitely because this is definitely not something that I don’t think anybody up here has ever wanted to do.”
