Critics question expansion of ordinance targeting homeless people sitting or lying on sidewalks | Local/County Politics

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The Colorado Springs City Council could vote on Tuesday to expand the area where anyone is prohibited from sitting, kneeling, laying down or laying down on public sidewalks and other rights of way – a law which critics say unfairly targets the homeless and could drive them away from services.

The rule has applied to Old Colorado City and downtown since 2016 and the expansion would extend it south to Cheyenne Road, so it would apply to sidewalks, streets and alleys surrounding the rescue mission of Springs and the Salvation Army’s RJ Montgomery Center providing shelter. and other homeless services. The area will also extend north to Rue Cache La Poudre.

Among those who could face the consequences of the law are homeless people Doug Ford and Stephan Schneider who sat on the sidewalk outside the Springs Rescue Mission on Tuesday awaiting a back-to-school meeting. If the new restrictions are passed, such behavior could result in a subpoena resulting in a fine of up to $500 or jail time of up to 90 days.

These are possible consequences after violators have been warned.

Schneider was asked to leave Mission property for seven days after eating in the dorm to manage his diabetes and if he backs off on the property during that time, he could be suspended for another week, so he was waiting on public ownership for the re- meeting entrance, he said. He would like to see a more practical solution than expanding the order.

“I would like the council and everyone to come together and solve the problem,” he said.

Stefan Schneider, 55, left, and Doug Ford, 45, smoke a cigarette on the sidewalk outside the Springs Rescue Mission on Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022. The Colorado Springs City Council will vote on Tuesday to expand the area where he is prohibits anyone from sitting, kneeling, lying down or laying down on public sidewalks and other rights of way. (The Gazette, Christian Murdock)

Christian Murdock/The Gazette

Colorado Springs police personnel declined to comment on the bill this week, including addressing practical questions about how they would enforce the law, saying they did not want to sway a council vote.

Spokesman Lt. Jim Sokolik said the law would not be enforced against those waiting outside the mission for services, as long as they did not block the right-of-way.

Cmdt. John Koch proposed the expansion of the law to the council, saying it would come into force in areas where police have received hundreds of calls reporting trespassing, disturbances and suspicious activity.

The expansion is necessary to protect people on sidewalks and passers-by, he said.

“It’s dangerous for people who engage in this behavior. It puts them at risk of being preyed upon by other people, being hit by vehicles…It’s also dangerous for business owners and residents who live in these areas,” he said.

In practice, the law can disperse homeless residents to other areas of the city, farther from services, said Beth Hall Roalstad, executive director of Homeward Pikes Peak, a nonprofit that runs a program of homeless awareness.

“I tend to think this extension of the area is to protect the image and businesses of downtown Colorado Springs,” she said.

Since the law was passed in 2016, the downtown core has seen fewer homeless people spending time on sidewalks during the day, she said. But that doesn’t make homelessness any less of a pressing issue in the city. Her outreach teams found homeless people hanging out all over the community, from the confines of the Air Force Academy to Fountain, she said.

Rescue mission spokesman Cameron Moix said he hoped expanding the order would encourage people to seek out services at the mission where people could hang out during the day.

“We don’t like to see people lying on the sidewalk, especially if they’re alone in the cold,” he said.

Sometimes people are barred from campus, but that’s the exception to the rule, he said.

People who receive a subpoena for breaking the law may be referred by the municipal court to a homeless justice program that can help connect them with a case manager. Seeing a case manager can sometimes fulfill the terms of the person’s probation, said Andy Phelps, the city’s homelessness prevention and response coordinator.

“Tickets alone will not end homelessness,” he said.

However, cities in Colorado have passed laws criminalizing homelessness in problematic ways, said Annie Kurtz, an attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado.

“What they’re trying to fix is ​​the visibility of homelessness…It’s just a huge waste of money,” she said.

In that case, pulling people away from services is likely to only make it harder for them to exit homelessness, she said.

“It’s just backwards and totally counterproductive,” she said.

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