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Show Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, May 30-June 2, 2020 A-5 The Park Record COURTESY OF OAKLEY CITY Oakley City officials voted to hold the annual Fourth of July rodeo this year despite the coronavirus pandemic. The event will be held with additional safety measures in place, such as limiting the number of spectators who will be allowed in the venue. Continued from A-1 Rodeo to go ahead r r k r h d e e o through it.” Woolstenhulme did not t immediately return a phone l call requesting additional O comment. , He also said the South Summit area had relatively few casg es of COVID-19. e While Woolstenhulme has expressed personal skepticism about the pandemic response, n Bullough said the mayor has d taken the responsibility to proe tect the community seriously. g But Bullough cautioned that the first cases that hit the Park City area were from outside visitors, a pattern that could be e repeated with a large event. “We very clearly were impacted by travel cases early s on,” Bullough said. “There’s e still a risk there and if the , East Side communities are attracting individuals to events, they’re going to increase their risk.” At Wednesday’s meeting, the mayor appeared determined that the rodeo go forward. “It makes a lot of sense to me. I guess they can outvote me if they don’t want to have it,” he said, referencing the City Council. “But then again, I’ll make decisions after that.” The Fourth of July rodeo is an annual tradition in the East Side city, which has a population of around 1,500 but routinely sells out its 5,500-seat stadium for the multi-day celebration. Many residents volunteer to keep the rodeo going, and it provides key revenue for the city, Smart said. Under Gov. Gary Herbert’s low-risk guidelines, Oakley did not require permission from the county Health Department to hold the rodeo, but Bullough said the department and the city have been working together. The department effectively capped the number of spectators at around 850 each night, Smart said. The Oakley City Council has heard from several people who oppose holding the rodeo, with one woman at the meeting Wednesday asking why the city should go forward with the event if it poses a health risk and the financial benefit is questionable. In a back-and-forth with the woman, the mayor said she could keep her family home from the rodeo if she was frightened about the health effects. “It doesn’t mean ... I’m not going to run into somebody at the post office,” she replied. Smart estimated this year’s rodeo would cost about $117,000, a substantial reduction from previous years as events and programs have been cut. Sponsors have remained very generous, Smart said, and he thought it likely the rodeo would make a modest return, a point Woolstenhulme echoed. “I will guarantee you, if we don’t break even on this thing, you’ll have my resignation,” the mayor said. A city staffer reported she had fielded many phone calls with mixed feedback ranging from people urging a return to normalcy to those who were shocked the city was considering holding the rodeo at all. Spectators at this year’s rodeo will be limited to groups of up to 10 people from the same household and will be spread across a stadium about 85% empty, Smart said. Everyone entering the stadium will be given an Oakley Rodeo bandana, and those not wearing a face covering may be escorted out, Smart wrote in an email to The Park Record. He said, while it hasn’t been easy, it was important to preserve the tradition of the rodeo. “Our whole city is known for the rodeo,” Smart said. “We are proud of that reputation, we want to continue to have that. That’s why we think it’s important to have a healthy rodeo.” Tooele blocks controversial COVID-19 protest concert Associated Press GRANTSVILLE – Tooele County has issued an order to close a local amphitheater in northern Utah, blocking a planned concert sponsored by activists opposed to coronavirus-related restrictions. The Tooele County Board of Health, the County Commission and the county health officer all issued a closure order Wednesday to the Amphitheater at Studio Ranch owner Jason Manning, who was scheduled to host the concert. The planned concert violates Republican Gov. Gary Herbert’s guidelines prohibiting mass gatherings to combat the spread of COVID-19. For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death. “(The order) was expected,” Manning said. “I guess they don’t respect the Constitution.” The order grants a temporary restraining order to the county against the venue to restrict it from hosting the concert on that day. Manning declined comment Wednesday on whether or not he would still host the concert. Concert organizer Eric Moutsos said in a Facebook post Wednesday that the concert is still on Saturday at the amphitheater near Grantsville, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) southwest of Salt Lake City. Masks were being donated, and medical, security, and hand-washing and hand sanitizing stations were planned, Moutsos said, adding that about 100 businesses have confirmed plans to have booths at the concert to help and highlight companies shuttered amid the pandemic. “If you would have said this four months ago, listening to country music, trying to save businesses was going to be the most radical thing in the country, or at least in the state of Utah, nobody would have believed it. But here we are,” Moutsos said. Manning could face criminal charges under state law if the concert proceeds, Tooele County Health Department spokeswoman Amy Bate said. The concert was originally going to be held in Kaysville until residents and the city council pushed back, arguing they didn’t feel like the community’s best interests were being considered when Mayor Katie Witt made the decision to allow it. JUNE SPECIALS Save $500 on NeoGraft: Advanced Hair Transplant Technology! No visible scar. 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