Attendees at a Las Vegas City Council meeting, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2019, show their disapproval for a city ordinance that would criminalize sleeping in public areas downtown when beds are available at established shelters.
Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020 | 5:05 p.m.
The Las Vegas City Council approved an ordinance 5-2 Wednesday that will make it illegal to sit, rest, sleep or camp on public sidewalks during designated hours of cleaning, viewed as an expansion of a controversial homelessness measure that passed in November.
Sponsored by Mayor Carolyn Goodman, the new ordinance authorizes the director of the Department of Operations and Maintenance to designate hours for sidewalk cleaning citywide. During those hours, the prohibited activities will be punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 or by imprisonment of up to six months, the same punishment as established under the prior homelessness ordinance.
Council members gave no statements on the ordinance. Ward 2 Councilwoman Victoria Seaman, Ward 4 Councilman Stavros Anthony, Ward 5 Councilman Cedric Crear and Mayor Pro Tempore Michele Fiore voted for the measure, while Ward 3 Councilwoman Olivia Diaz and Ward 1 Councilman Brian Knudsen voted against it.
Knuden and Diaz were the only council members to vote against the similar ordinance in November, which makes it a misdemeanor to rest, sleep or camp in public rights-of-ways adjacent to residential properties, in 12 downtown-area districts, or within 500 feet of a food processing facility.
Immediately following Wednesday’s vote, four protestors holding signs that criticized the ordinance rushed out of the chambers while shouting, “Housing not handcuffs!” They were just some of approximately 20 people, some of whom represented organizations that serve the homeless, to voice opposition to the ordinance.
Reasons for opposition to the new street-cleaning ordinance were similar to the arguments against the first ordinance, including that the measure will throw people who have nowhere to go in jail and make it harder for them to break the cycle of homelessness.
Carmella Gadsen, an organizer with the progressive organization Battle Born Progress, asked the council to consider reducing the fine or misdemeanor charge so that displaced and homeless people looking for jobs don’t wind up with a criminal record.
“At this point, I feel that you’re planning to move forward. In doing that, I hope you’ll make it easier for people to cope with this particular ordinance,” said Gadsen, who described herself as someone who works directly with the homeless.
Mercedes Seyedin, an employee at Care Complex for the homeless on Foremaster Lane, similarly implored the council to reconsider the punitive aspect of the cleaning ordinance.
“It is not that I’m opposed to clean streets, but I’m opposed to the methods in which they are being enforced,” Seyedin said.
As was the case during discussions of the previous ordinance, some exchanges during public comment turned heated. Resident Nathaniel Phillips asked the council to “stop interrupting every advocate” and called the tone of the meetings “juvenile.”
Although Goodman called out what she described as disrespectful behavior, she also thanked some speakers for working with the homeless and asked them to write down their phone numbers so the city could get in touch with them.
“At this time now, we’re going to ask you to be of help to all of us, who are working so hard,” Goodman said.
