A proposal to restrict the use of city property for civil immigration enforcement will return to the Worcester City Council on Tuesday, three weeks after it fell one vote short, while councilors also turn their attention to violence downtown, homelessness, deteriorating streets and the city’s increasingly expensive housing market.
Council Vice Chairman Khrystian King is seeking reconsideration of two Aug. 18 votes involving signs on appropriate city properties stating that the sites may not be used for civil immigration enforcement. One order also asks the administration to draft an ordinance addressing enforcement of the signs; a companion measure calls for any required signage to appear in all appropriate languages. King’s original proposal failed on a 5-5 vote last month, with Councilor Tony Economou absent.
The issue returns amid an agenda weighted with quality-of-life concerns. Economou is asking City Manager Eric Batista for an immediate action plan addressing violent incidents in and around Worcester Common and the downtown business district over the past several months. Councilor Kathleen Toomey, meanwhile, wants the Public Safety Committee to bring social service agencies that work with people experiencing homelessness and addiction to the table for a discussion about their role in addressing recent public safety problems…