Denver City Council member tests positive for COVID-19 following in-person meeting

The staff does not think most people who were in council chambers are at risk.

Denver's City and County Building. Aug. 10, 2021.

Denver's City and County Building. Aug. 10, 2021.

Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
(Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite)

staff photo

Denver City Council staff said Tuesday a council member has tested positive for COVID-19, a day after participating in an in-person meeting at the City and County Building.

Council President Stacie Gilmore said out of respect for the council member’s privacy, she would not be releasing the council member’s name. The member notified the staff of the positive test on Tuesday.

Twelve of the city’s 13 council members were present in person during Monday night’s meeting, which lasted much longer than usual meetings due to a lengthy discussion and public hearing over a proposed bond package. Denver City Council spokesperson Stacy Simonet said her staff has been notifying people on Tuesday who may have been at risk of exposure. She said she has been in contact with city public health executive director Bob McDonald.

Simonet said based on McDonald’s feedback, most people who attended Monday’s meeting are not at risk of testing positive. She said most people were far enough from where council members sit on the dais for transmission to happen since it’s more than six feet apart. A few council members were wearing masks on the dais, though most were not.

Committee meetings for Tuesday were canceled, and Gilmore added that two meetings scheduled for Wednesday have been moved online.

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