TACOMA, Wash. — The Tacoma City Council approved an ordinance banning camping on public property within 10 blocks of temporary shelters Tuesday night.
The ordinance, sponsored by Councilmembers John Hines, Joe Bushnell and Sarah Rumbaugh, makes camping and storing belongings within ten blocks of a temporary shelter within Tacoma a misdemeanor offense. An amendment to the ordinance put forward by Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards also bans camping within 200 feet of protected waterways like the Puyallup River, the Thea Foss Waterway, Wapato Creek and the shores of Commencement Bay.
The City said in a release it will work to ensure that the "least restrictive voluntary enforcement methods possible" are used before people face penalties. The maximum punishment for violating the ordinance is a $250 fine or up to 30 days in jail.
The city planned to consider a ban on camping on public property last year, but the proposal was nixed out of concern for the number of people with personal property on public lands.
It's estimated there are more than 4,300 homeless people in Pierce County based on this summer's point-in-time count. The county doesn't have nightly shelter space available for 2,970 of those 4,300 individuals.
The new ordinance will go into effect on Nov. 14, which Mayor Victoria Woodards said is the same day a new low-barrier shelter will open in Tacoma. It impacts a ten block radius around nine temporary shelters in the Hilltop Business District, the Lincoln Business District, the Fern Hill Business District, the Dome District and the South Tacoma Business District.
The ordinance asserts the 10-block buffer will "provide sufficient space and safety measures to ensure the protection of the community and those staying at these shelters against the adverse impacts of unsanctioned camping."
Dozens of people signed up to give public comment at Tuesday night's meeting. The majority spoke against the ordinance and said it would criminalize homelessness and impose unjust penalties on people struggling to survive. Those in support cited concerns over public safety.
Councilmembers Hines, Bushnell, Walker, Diaz, Rumbaugh and Mayor Woodards voted in favor. Deputy Mayor Catherine Ushka and Councilmembers Keith Blocker and Kiara Daniels voted no.
When the vote was completed some community members yelled 'shame' at council members. Mayor Woodards called for a recess.
Hines said the ordinance clearly connects the idea that the city is addressing encampments in places where shelter is already offered. Hines also said the ordinance could help the city set up more shelters by addressing the concerns of neighbors who may be afraid encampments will pop up nearby.
Deputy Mayor Ushka spoke out in opposition to the ordinance, saying she didn't think the ordinance was enforceable or that it will be effective. She also said she could not support an ordinance that may put financial barriers on those impacted.
"I'm going to oppose this ban for many reasons, but in the end, I cannot pass something that makes economic challenge a criminal offense," she said.
Councilmember Blocker joined Ushka in saying he didn't think the ordinance would work.
"I don't think this is the solution," Blocker said. "I do think this ordinance is off the mark. It's not going to get us what we want, I think it's going to cause more harm than good in the long run."
Councilmembers Bushnell, Ogly Diaz and Mayor Woodards voted in favor of the ban, despite all three saying they were conflicted about supporting it. Woodards said the only reason she was voting in favor was that the city is able to offer a low-barrier shelter.
"I'm not voting for this so that we can criminalize homelessness, I'm voting for this so we can get people to accept the services that we offer," Woodards said. "I don't know if this ordinance will do that, but what I do know is that what we've been doing hasn't been able to do that."