Latest news with #campingban
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Can council repeal the city's camping ban?
Jul. 4—MORGANTOWN — Now that a new lineup has been sworn in, could Morgantown City Council simply repeal the camping ban ordinance upheld by the city's voters on April 29 ? Technically, yes. Based on the city charter, there's nothing preventing it. Is it going to ? "I don't think so, " Mayor Danielle Trumble told The Dominion Post, explaining she's not been involved in any conversations regarding the law's repeal. "I respect the decision of the voters, " she added. "But this is a good time to ensure that we are being compassionate with enforcement." The Morgantown camping ban debate kicked off July 2, 2024, and basically ran hot until the end of April, when Morgantown's voters opted not to repeal the ban in a closely contested ballot referendum — 982 voted against repeal while 904 voted to strike it from the books. As part of that same ballot, Morgantown elected two new council members, shifting the apparent majority opinion on the issue based on votes cast and /or public commentary offered by Trumble, Deputy Mayor Brian Butcher, Jodi Hollingshead and Mark Downs. But even if a majority of council is aligned and the city's charter is hands-off on the matter, repealing a law immediately after it was upheld by the voters is shaky ground — not only electorally, but potentially legally. When asked about the legality of a repeal, Trumble consulted the city's attorney and said she was informed that while there's nothing preventing it, there would likewise be nothing preventing a lawsuit for negating the vote. Further, it was explained that most places build in a moratorium on action involving the subject of a referendum. As for enforcement, Morgantown Communications Director Brad Riffee said there had been six warnings issued—but no citations written—as of Wednesday morning. The law took effect June 4. Under the ordinance, a first violation results in a written warning and information about available shelter and services. A second violation may result in a fine of up to $200, and a third violation within a year may result in a fine up to $500 and /or up to 30 days in jail. Individuals cited under the law are eligible for alternative sentencing if they seek assistance with substance use, mental health, or housing-related case management. The city is working with Valley HealthCare Systems to manage the alternative sentencing program. Further, the law says no citation will be issued unless the person in violation has been offered "alternative shelter " and refused the offer. An offer of shelter means an alternate location, which may include "emergency shelter or any alternate indoor or outdoor location where the person may sleep overnight." The problem is—and has been—that there are very limited shelter beds in and around Morgantown. During the most recent council meeting, Butcher said the West Virginia Coalition to End Homelessness made him aware of multiple individuals whose offer of alternative shelter was in another city. "If this shelter was aware of the fact that we were sending people there, they would probably not be too happy about it. It was out of town. I don't know how that necessarily qualifies as an offer of shelter. Technically, I guess it does, " he said. "This is what I was worried about, and the things I was talking about when I said we're putting our first responders in a bad position—where they have to respond to these things in ways that don't necessarily meet the needs of the people they're talking to."
CBS News
13-06-2025
- CBS News
Northern Colorado city's new camping and storage ban applies to most public and private properties
The City of Greeley has enacted a new law banning camping or storing personal items outside in nearly all public and private spaces. The law, known as the "outdoor camping and storage ban," was first discussed more than two years ago, but didn't take effect until Wednesday. While the law technically began Wednesday morning, the City of Greeley said they are not actively enforcing it at this moment. Instead, the city said they are focusing on community and staff education. "We are still in the education phase, we are still internally trying to figure out 'what does that look like?' and implementation," said Richard Ruggieri, chief public safety officer for Greeley. Ruggieri said the city is working with the police department and other entities to make sure everyone has the resources they need to provide to those who may be violating the law. But when officials do start to enforce the new law, violators can face up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine. "You can't camp outdoors on public space or private space, and you cannot have outdoor storage of property," Ruggieri said. "We are trying to educate folks on what it is, and what the ordinance is not." Richard Ruggieri, chief public safety officer for the City of Greeley, discusses a new camping and storage ban in the city that took effect on Wednesday, June 11, 2025. CBS While the law does have the potential to impact everyone in the city, some of its specifications may lead many to believe it's targeting homeless people in an effort to make them leave the area. Because the law prohibits people from sleeping outdoors or storing their personal items in most situations, many of the unhoused people in the region will no longer be able to stay where they do. When asked for his response to those suggestions, Ruggieri said, "that is understandable, that perception. And that is what we want to educate the community about. That is not what (the law) is about at all." He claims the law was created as a way to help the city secure public safety and health. He noted that camping and storing personal items outdoors can lead to health hazards, including exposure to rodents and disease. He also said the ordinance allows the community to be cleaner by reducing the likelihood of litter. He said the city does not wish to arrest violators once enforcement begins, but rather use the law as a way to encourage those breaking the ordinance to obtain housing or gain access to other resources offered to those experiencing issues. "The biggest thing we are trying to do is have compliance. There is nobody in the police department, or nobody in public service and safety, that really wants to arrest someone who is camping, down on their luck, homeless, or unhoused. It is about trying to connect people with resources," Ruggieri said. "We've got to connect with those people who need the help to put them where they belong, not on the streets." Ruggieri noted that Greeley closes their homeless shelter during the summer as a result of a lack of resources and funding throughout the year. However, he said the city does have access to things like hotel vouchers and partnerships with nonprofits that can help further assist those in need. Ruggieri said there are exemptions to the law, including one that allows private property owners to camp outside on their land for up to seven days. For more information on the law and what it enforces, click here.
Reuters
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
California governor urges cities to 'take back the streets' from homeless
May 12 (Reuters) - California Governor Gavin Newsom on Monday urged localities to "take back the streets" from homeless encampments, proposing language for every city and county to use in a local ban on camping in public. Newsom, a Democrat often mentioned as a potential presidential candidate for 2028, has taken a harder line on homelessness as California's unhoused population has grown to 180,000. His stance has alienated some liberal allies who advocate affordable housing over crackdowns. Since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled a year ago it was legal to ban camping in public even when there is no shelter space available, 42 of California's 482 cities and two of its 58 counties have passed some form of a camping ban, according to the National Homelessness Law Center. Nationwide, some 160 cities and counties have passed similar bans in response to increasingly visible homelessness, with people pitching tents on sidewalks and public spaces. "It is time to take back the streets. It's time to take back the sidewalks. It's time to take these encampments and provide alternatives," Newsom, who filed a brief before the Supreme Court last year supporting camping bans, told a press conference. While urging compassion and dignity, Newsom's model ordinance would ban camping or semi-permanent structures on public land and allow city officials to remove them provided they notify the unhoused at least 48 hours in advance. The proposal requires city officials to "make every reasonable effort" to provide shelter for those affected. An introduction to the proposal states, "No person should face criminal punishment for sleeping outside when they have nowhere else to go." The announcement drew criticism from homeless advocates who said it fails to address the root cause of housing shortages and soaring housing costs. "This is a problem that built up through years and years of under investment, and it's going to take some level of consistency and commitment to the problem to actually make headway," said Alex Visotzky, a fellow at the National Alliance to End Homelessness. The Cicero Institute, a conservative think tank, urged California to follow the example of Republican-led states that have passed laws allowing them to sue cities that fail to clear encampments. "This approach is far more effective in ensuring that cities are not derelict in their duties to protect the homeless and the public alike," said Devon Kurtz, public safety policy director for the Cicero Institute.
