Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Homelessness Urban Camping topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Florence council approves first reading of urban camping ordinance with study requirement
Summary
The Florence City Council approved first reading of an ordinance to regulate urban camping but amended the motion to require the city manager to consult a local homelessness committee, conduct a study on services and enforcement, and return with the ordinance for second reading in December.
The Florence City Council on Oct. 16 approved first reading of an ordinance to add Article 5 to Chapter 17 of the city code to regulate improper use of public places and urban camping, amending the motion to require further study and stakeholder engagement before a second reading.
Council members and staff said the ordinance mirrors measures passed in other South Carolina municipalities and is intended to address the “overuse” of public rights of way, downtown plazas and parks that council members said can be encumbered by personal belongings and prolonged stays.
During discussion council members directed the city manager to meet with the No One Left Unsheltered committee, to study education, service needs and enforcement options related to people experiencing homelessness, and to consider homeless court as an option for addressing potential infractions under the new ordinance. The amended motion requires the city manager’s review and directs staff to return the ordinance for second reading in December.
Council also confirmed the item would be the subject of legal review in executive session; council members raised typical implementation questions such as how public spaces would be defined and how enforcement would interact with available services. City staff said the ordinance would allow the city to assist individuals in moving to appropriate facilities while preserving public use of sidewalks, plazas and parks.
The council voted in favor of the amended first reading; no roll-call vote was recorded in the transcript and no individual vote tallies or member-by-member votes were provided on the record.
What the ordinance would do and next steps: staff said the draft would apply to public rights of way, downtown plazas and park spaces. The amendment adds an explicit requirement that the city manager meet with the local homelessness committee, complete a study covering education, service needs and enforcement, and then present the ordinance again for second reading in December. The city also flagged that any enforcement would be coordinated with legal guidance and that executive-session review had occurred.
Because the council approved only first reading (with the study amendment), no enforcement changes take effect until follow-up actions and a successful second reading, if any.
Action and timeline: the amended motion sets a staff study and stakeholder meeting requirement and schedules the ordinance for council consideration (second reading) in December.
