The Greeley City Council gave initial approval to a streamlined version of an ordinance for a camping ban that, if passed, will make it illegal to camp within city limits as early as June 11.
The proposed ordinance is the result of several years of research on how to address homelessness from city departments including Homeless Solutions, Public Works, Greeley Police and the City Attorney’s Office. Since then, city staff has discussed with the council how encampments create health and safety concerns such as open fires that can quickly get out of control and human waste in the waterways that can introduce E. coli.
On Tuesday, city staff and Greeley Police Chief Adam Turk presented a draft of this ordinance that would make it a misdemeanor for people to camp within city limits outside designated camping zones. In response to a previous city council work session in March, city staff provided succinct definitions of what camping encompasses.
Under the ordinance, camping is defined as the use of property for the purpose of overnight occupancy or to dwell in a place by erecting a shelter. This definition also includes sleeping overnight in a vehicle parked on public property, but provisions have been made to ensure napping in public or picnicking on public property wouldn’t violate the ordinance.
This ordinance also specifies that residents may not give permission for people to camp for longer than seven days per year on their own private property that has not been authorized for camping by the city. Residents who do this will also be charged with a misdemeanor, just like those in violation of the camping ban, which could carry a $500-$1,000 fine, up to a year in prison or both.
Turk made it clear that officers would not jump straight to making arrests and would instead use this ordinance as a “tool in the toolbox” for dealing with homeless people. Enforcement would begin with education and then be followed by verbal warnings and citations before arrests are made, he told the council.
Continuing her strong opposition to the ordinance, Councilwoman Deb Deboutez reiterated her refusal to support it.
“I’m totally opposed to this ordinance; it’s cruel. People do not have a place to go,” Deboutez said. “We have no homeless shelter. People have no place and no alternative.”
The United Way of Weld County’s Cold Weather Shelter, which has 60 beds in Greeley, closed for the summer on April 30. This left the Guadalupe Community Center as the only operating shelter in Greeley, with only 20 beds available, resulting in many of the estimated 541 homeless people in Greeley without shelter that wouldn’t be subject to this camping ban.
Councilman Brett Payton questioned Turk about whether the council could trust that police would follow the process he had outlined for enacting the ordinance, as it was not outlined in the ban’s language. Turk answered that officers will be educated and trained to follow that procedure, just as they do any other ordinance that the council approves.
Councilman Tommy Butler followed Payton’s question by asking City Attorney Stacey Aurzada if the city could officially make some public areas places where overnight camping is allowed. Aurzada informed Butler that it would be possible for the city to do that.
In February, city staff conducted a survey about the camping ban, collecting 352 responses from Greeley residents. About 53% strongly supported the ban. Additionally, another recent poll indicated that 18% of Greeley residents viewed housing and homelessness as the biggest problem facing Greeley.
“I spoke to a grandmother this afternoon who’ll never take her grandson back to the park because he picked up a needle in Lincoln Park outside the playground,” Councilwoman Melissa McDonald said. “I’m not saying that all homeless people are criminals, though there’s certainly a percentage of them that are. This doesn’t mean that we are against homeless people and want them out of our city. But we need to do something to help the other residents of our city enjoy the parks and the public spaces that they pay for with their tax dollars.”
Mayor John Gates was split on the ordinance, recognizing other cities’ difficulties with similar ordinances in the past, such as with Fort Collins’ camping ban. However, as a former police officer, Gates wanted to give officers a tool to use when they may have trouble removing a homeless person from an area.
“We need to give you the tools you need to be successful,” Gates said. “We’re at a crossroads, and clearly this will be a controversial subject, and I understand that.”
By a vote of 5-2, with only Butler and Deboutez opposed, the council approved bringing the ordinance to a public hearing on Tuesday, June 3, where, if passed, the camping ban will be implemented on June 13. The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at City Center South, 1001 11th Ave.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Greeley City Council gives initial approval to camping ban )
Also on site :