Perry Mayor John Adorf made a proclamation at the recent City Council meeting encouraging the use of face coverings and social distancing in the city.

However, the proclamation does not require wearing masks. City Administrator Sven Peterson says the proclamation is designed to remind residents to do their part in stopping the spread of COVID-19, “We just want to make sure our local residents and businesses are doing everything they can to slow the spread of coronavirus in town and out of town if people travel. We’re just encouraging everybody to wear their face covering when they’re out and about shopping as well as hoping businesses strongly encourage or require masks when patrons come into their businesses.”

In order to practice what they preach, the Council began asking participants to wear face coverings at their meetings. According to the state dashboard, Dallas County alone has more than 1,800 positive COVID-19 cases, which ranks sixth in the state.