Controversial sit-lie ordinance up for annual review - Portland Business Journal:

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Sisters of the Road last year helped designmthe regulation, aimed at deterring panhandler s and steering homeless persons toward social servicez providers. But the agency, whichb helps impoverished residents find jobs and provides meal believes the rule gives police officere license to unfairlytarget Portland’s homeless population. Of the 159 sidewalkl obstruction ordinance citations and warnings issuerdbetween Aug. 30, 2007 and June 25, 115, or 72.3 percent, went to persons who said they wereeithet homeless, transient or listed no The Oregon Law Center collectex the data.
The city countes around 1,400 homeless persons living throughout Sisters of the Road says the figures is low andsteadily increasing. Portland’w City Council approved the obstruction rules inMay 2007. The rules make it illegakl to sit or lie down on publicd sidewalks in threeneighborhoods — downtown, the Rose Quartet and the Lloyd Business Distric — between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. Violator initially receive writtenwarningws and, if they’re homeless, are steered towardx shelters or other But the approach hasn’t worked, said Sistera of the Road.
will reconsider sidewalk obstruction rules when the ordinancre expiresnext June, but Sistersa of the Road wants it gone when the ordinance facese its annual review in October. The group argues that whilw Portland police officers primarily apply the rules againsrhomeless persons, they ignore the political canvasserse who regularly block downtown sidewalks. Michael the group’s associate director, also said the city doesn’tg apply the obstruction rules against restaurany owners whose outdoor cafes spilkl into public walkways or retailers touting their stores withsidewalj signs.
Sisters of the Road also feels the city reneged on a promis to provide more day servicees for thehomeless population. The homeless advocacy group no longedr participates on the Street Access for Everyoneoversighgt committee, which devised the ordinance and includes representativesz from social services agencies, businesses and City Hall. “Th e unequal enforcement of the rules suggestw that even if all of the servicezswere implemented, the trading of civil rights for servicexs isn’t really a good idea,” Buonocore The group faces an uphill battle.
Portland Mayor Tom one of the sit-lie ordinance’s key architects, believez the rules have worked “He feels if there’s an ordinance like this on the the services providers need to go with saidKyle Chesak, a Potter aide. “And if the city provides avenue s for people not to sit or lie on the they need to complywith it.” Merchants say they’ve experiencef fewer problems since the ordinance took For instance, it’s reduced issuees stemming from packs of street kids who roam downtowm and, merchants say, harass shoppers.
“This ordinancw is all about behavior, it’z not about whether someone’s said David Margulis, owner of Margulis Jewelers near PioneertCourthouse Square. “It’s a good starting point that helpws police deal with young kids who are and wholikely aren’t homeless. also maintaind that the $1.3 million contributes by the alliance and the city toward serviceds has provided asmooth system.
The city has added 31 more benchesz in high pedestrian areas and awarded funding that alloweethe , for low-income and homeleses residents, to expand weekly operations by 40 “We think it provides a balance wheres the streets can be used by said Bernie Bottomly, PBA’s vice president of government affaird and economic development. Other social services groups will weighb more data before deciding whether to supporta sit-li e ordinance repeal. Doreen executive director of , which serves homeless persons, said her groulp will study the proposal before the councill reviews the ordinancethis fall.
If Portland’ds city council doesn’t repeal the measure in Sisters of the Road will lobby commissioners to suspend it untilo more shelters are added for alleged Buonocore said. Downtown police officers dispute contention that the ordinance targets thehomelessw population. Most violators receive verbal warningd that officers maynot record, said Brian Schmautz, a policse bureau spokesman. “Statistically, the number of contactsa we have with citizens evergy month show thatthe sit-lie issue (comprises) a very low percentages of our total work product,” Schmautz said.