Van Zeeland

Van Zeeland took to Facebook to address the suspicions of residents who accused the government of overreaching in efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19.

But the episode frustrated Van Zeeland, who says local representatives are giving residents no reason to believe they are being watched, yet rampant misinformation has required them to prove that negative - a nearly impossible task.

The council decided to address the rumors head-on, “so staff could refute them,” Van Zeeland said.

Van Zeeland has received emails about the purported dangers of 5G since joining the council last year.

“So, there is this conspiracy theory that local government is at least partially responsible for some sort of surveillance system to make sure that when the state is under quarantine guidelines, people are staying at home,” Van Zeeland said.