Councilmember Luke Waddell reintroduced the ordinance, which bans sleeping, setting up tents and cooking equipment on city-owned property at night, this year, after a vote on it was tabled in 2023.
“What I’m proposing tonight, It’s a reasonable, common sense ordinance that says our parks, sidewalks and storefronts should have been safe and accessible for everyone, and that we prioritize public safety in this community,” Waddell said back in August.
After undergoing a few changes, most notably Councilmember David Joyner’s amendments — reducing the penalties from a class three misdemeanor to an infraction, and making it legal for people to sleep in their cars on parking lots – the ordinance became less punitive…