NEWS

Here are some places you'll be asked to wear a mask again in the Rockford region

Jeff Kolkey
Rockford Register Star
Rockford area governments, schools, stores, churches and organizations are weighing the latest guidance from the Centers for Disease Control that everyone, including the fully vaccinated, should wear a mask in areas of the country with significant risks of transmission as the highly contagious Delta variant spreads.

ROCKFORD — Recommendations that everyone — whether vaccinated or not — mask up again have been met with a mixed response as the spread of the COVID-19 delta variant has led to increased cases and hospitalizations.

Rockford officials adopted the guidance from the Centers for Disease Control, Illinois Department of Public Health and Winnebago County Health Department. As of Monday, Rockford is requiring visitors to City Hall to wear a mask regardless of vaccine status.

Likewise, the Rockford Public Library is requiring anyone visiting any branch or the mobile library to don a face covering. Pushback is expected, especially after the fully vaccinated have for weeks felt free to go maskless.

But Library Marketing Director Bridget Finn said the library must implement the guidance to keep staff and visitors safe, especially children under 12 who are not eligible for a vaccine. 

"Because of the variant and the decision of the CDC we are again requiring people to wear face masks to be in the library," Finn said. "We put the signs back up as soon as the CDC and the Winnebago County Health Department made their statement last week."

More:Rockford doctors tout vaccines, mask usage as COVID-19 cases spike due to delta variant

Data shows the delta variant is spreading across the country, especially among the unvaccinated, and is far more contagious than previous strains of the virus. 

The agencies last week issued new guidance that everyone, regardless of vaccination status, should wear a mask indoors in areas of the country that, like Winnebago County, are experiencing a "substantial risk" or, like Boone County, are experiencing a "high risk" of community transmission of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic.

“Substantial” risk occurs when new cases are between 50 to 99 per 100,000 people over a seven-day period, while “high” risk occurs when cases exceed that amount.

In the seven days that ended Sunday, Winnebago County saw 233 new COVID-19 cases, which is 82.5 per 100,000 people. There were 54 new cases in Boone County, or nearly 101 per 100,000 people.

Here is a look at how governments, businesses and organizations are reacting to the new guidelines.

More:Winnebago County COVID cases up nearly 10%; Illinois cases surge 46%

Courts

Officials with the 17th Circuit Court, which covers Winnebago and Boone counties, will ask anyone who is unvaccinated to wear a mask in courthouses. Those who are fully vaccinated have the option of going without a mask and social distancing requirements have been relaxed.  

Chief Judge Eugene Doherty encourages everyone who is eligible to get the vaccine.

And given the plentiful availability of vaccines, the courts as of Monday are eliminating some of the social distancing precautions that had limited the number of jury trials throughout the pandemic. 

County government

Winnebago County and Boone County government buildings will encourage everyone to mask up via signs on the doors. Winnebago County Board Chairman Joe Chiarelli said the plan is to continue to encourage masks while not requiring them. 

Boone County Administrator Kevin Catlin said the plan is to follow health department guidelines and ask everyone to wear masks. But Catlin said the nature of county government and the number of individuals holding elected office makes it virtually impossible to require compliance. 

Transportation

The guidelines mean little change for the Rockford Mass Transit District, spokeswoman Lisa Brown said.

All bus drivers and passengers were already required to wear a mask. 

"Actually, we never stopped wearing masks," she said. "The Federal Transit Administration is our guiding force, and they have always maintained masks on public transportation. So, we are going to be wearing masks until the president says we do not have wear masks."

Van Galder is also still requiring passengers on the bus as well as in its terminals or stations to wear a face mask. Like RMTD, Van Galder follows federal guidelines and never stopped requiring its passengers to wear a mask.

More:All aboard for a COVID shot: Rockford vaccination effort goes mobile

Schools

School officials across the Rockford region are weighing their options about a month before school starts.

Rockford Public Schools spokeswoman Cathy Bayer said district leaders haven’t finalized their plans. They have some time to decide, however, with the first day of school scheduled Sept. 2.

Harlem School District administration is also still deciding. 

“We are in the final stages of planning for this school year,” said Jason Blume, director of equity and community engagement. “We have not released our back-to-school information/guidance yet. We hope to release this information in the coming days.”

More:Will Rockford-area schools require masks? Many are undecided as they weigh CDC guidance

Shopping

CherryVale Mall Manager Mark Peterson issued a statement from CBL Properties, the owner of the mall:

“We recommend that customers continue to follow CDC guidelines, which includes wearing masks, practicing social distancing and staying home if sick. Individual retailers may implement their own precautions, including requiring masks to enter their stores. We ask that customers respect the policies that our retailers may have in place. Please contact individual stores directly to confirm their policies.”

More:Rockford University, Rock Valley College decide not to mandate COVID-19 vaccine

Grocery stores

Woodman’s Market, 3155 McFarland Road, continues to recommend customers wear masks in the store, but it is not required. 

“Nothing’s changed," said Scott Leeder, manager. "We’re just recommending (shoppers) wear masks.”

St. Louis-based Schnuck Markets, which has six stores in Winnebago County, is requiring its staff and vendor partners to wear a face covering in stores in areas of high transmission regardless of their vaccination status. 

"Schnucks is also strongly encouraging customers to wear face coverings while shopping and will offer complimentary facemasks," the company said in a statement.

Working out

Michelle Polivka, YMCA vice president of marketing and communications, said masking will not be required at any of its facilities until mandated by the state.

Churches

The Catholic churches of the Diocese of Rockford require individuals who have not been fully vaccinated to wear masks indoors, according to Penny Wiegert, director of communications for the diocese.

"We're reviewing that policy and trying to keep up with the changes as much as possible," she said.

Staff writers Chris Green, Shaquil Manigault, Ken DeCoster and Andrea V. Watson contributed to this report.

Jeff Kolkey: jkolkey@rrstar.com; @jeffkolkey