Monroe County will not enforce mask mandate — but businesses can have their own rules

Monroe County will no longer enforce its mask mandate following Gov. Ron DeSantis’ executive order that invalidates local COVID-19 rules.

Key West had already stopped enforcing its facial covering mandate in early March after DeSantis canceled fines for violating COVID emergency orders.

Monroe issued a statement Monday night that the county also would no longer enforce its rule, which was put in place last summer as the pandemic heated up. However, spokeswoman Kristen Livengood said the decision does not prevent businesses from requiring customers and workers to wear masks.

“While Monroe County Code Compliance will no longer respond to COVID-19 facial covering-related complaints, individual businesses may still have facial covering requirements in place if they choose,” Livengood said. “Nothing in the Governor’s Order prevents a restaurant or other business from requiring employees and patrons to wear masks while on the premises.”

Monroe County commissioners will gather for a special meeting at 9 a.m. Wednesday to discuss the governor’s executive orders and consider rescinding the county mask ordinance. The meeting will be at the Marathon Government Center and be available on Zoom.

The Key West City Commission was already planning to take up its mask mandate at its regular meeting set for 5 p.m. Tuesday.

“It really does not change anything,” said Key West Mayor Teri Johnston because the city has already given up on enforcing its mask law.

“Every individual business can decide whether they want people to wear masks before they come into the business,” Johnston said. “We at City Hall will still require masks when you come into the building.”

Mark Rossi, a former city commissioner who owns a complex of bars on Duval Street, said since March he has left the mask-wearing decision up to customers and employees.

“Once the city took it down, we took ours down,” Rossi said. “It’s a customer’s choice.”

Phil Amsterdam, an owner of Amsterdam’s Curry Mansion Inn in Key West, said he didn’t know yet if the inn would change how it handles mask-wearing.

“We’ve been requiring masks when people are walking around,” Amsterdam said. “I don’t know if we have a policy yet.”

Amsterdam said his customers don’t seem to mind wearing masks at the 28-room inn.

“We only have very intelligent people staying here and they don’t seem to mind the masks at all,” Amsterdam said. “ We haven’t had any push-back from people.”