Stamford is instituting a face mask mandate for all indoor public spaces, regardless of vaccination status, and it goes into effect at 8 a.m. on Thursday.
Masks will also be required at all outdoor gatherings of more than 100 persons at City of Stamford facilities or parks, regardless of vaccination status.
Mayor David Martin said he has issued an executive order and said the mandate will remain in effect until further notice.
The mayor said a mask or face covering will be required in any private indoor business or place of employment where social distancing is impractical, unlikely, or difficult to maintain.
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The requirement extends to bars, restaurants, theatres, office buildings, and gyms.
The mayor said he is also recommending that the Board of Education require students and faculty to wear face masks inside Stamford Public School buildings, and for staff to be required to be vaccinated.
Gov. Ned Lamont issued a statewide order last week that allows municipal leaders to require masks in indoor public places within their respective towns and cities.
“This mask mandate is in the best interests of the people of our City, and is necessary to minimize the substantial threat to public health due to the ongoing rise in the spread of Covid-19,” Martin said in a statement.
Stamford is the third Connecticut municipality to issue an indoor mask mandate. New Haven and Hartford have both issued mask mandates as well.
“Given the recent acceleration in the spread of the Delta variant, wearing a face mask or covering in indoor public spaces, along with getting vaccinated, remain the most effective mitigation strategies in combatting against Covid-19,” Stamford’s medical advisor, Dr. Henry Yoon, said in a statement.
