Sandy Springs council adopts three ordinances limiting overnight solicitation, blocking of entries and creating 8-foot buffer zones

The Sandy Springs City Council on April 1 approved three related ordinances intended to reduce nighttime solicitation, prevent blockage of property entrances and create buffer zones near campuses and places of worship.

City Attorney Dan Lee, who presented the measures, described the overnight solicitation proposal as "a proposed ordinance that would limit solicitation and the delivery of uncontracted for literature into the residential neighborhoods between the hours of 9PM and 7AM," and said the city had consulted with outside groups including the Anti-Defamation League and the American Civil Liberties Union. Lee told the council the provisions were written to be content neutral and to fit the Supreme Court's time, place and manner framework.

Supporters and opponents spoke during the public hearing. Mike Pachek, who identified himself as a Sandy Springs resident, said the ADL and others had urged the changes and asked council to balance safety and speech. He warned against unintended consequences for journalists and newspaper distribution, urging the council to "please do not allow the law of unintended consequences to restrain freedom of the press in the name of stopping antisemitism." David Eitan (Eitan Davidson), regional director for the ADL Southeast, told the council the group prepared the model language "in the spirit of protecting public safety" and said the draft "protects the first amendment and it protects the rights of everyone while maintaining public safety."

Council members debated scope and enforcement over nearly two hours. Key details confirmed during the meeting: - The overnight solicitation ban applies between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m. and is intended to prevent uninvited late-night leafleting and doorstep intrusions. - A separate provision reiterates that canvassing or soliciting is unlawful on private premises where a visible sign at the entry prohibits such activity; City Attorney Dan Lee said that restriction "is already the law in Georgia" but the ordinance codifies it within city code. - The buffer-zone ordinance creates an 8‑foot distance that a person must keep from another in certain common areas (campuses, places of worship, public greens, sidewalks) if the other person does not consent to closer contact. Lee described the 8‑foot rule as a tool to give officers a concrete standard when two opposing groups are in a shared public space.

Police leadership offered enforcement context. The chief of police said the ordinance would give officers a clearer standard to remove or separate individuals when a presence appears intended to intimidate; he told council an example in which people with flags walked into an event and that the ordinance "will help us do that because they walked through there for only 1 reason, and that was to intimidate the Jewish community." Lee said the time limitation and content‑neutral wording aimed to meet legal standards established by case law.

Council discussion raised several recurring concerns: whether the measures were narrowly tailored enough to survive legal challenge, how the ordinances would affect campaign canvassing and newspaper delivery, and whether the city should limit the rules to particular sites (campuses and houses of worship) rather than citywide. Councilwoman Melody Kelly repeatedly expressed concern about breadth, saying she feared the 8‑foot rule was "overbroad" for everyday interactions and preferred narrower, site-specific language. Other members said the ordinances are intended to balance free-speech rights with protection from intimidation and unwanted intrusions.

All three ordinances passed on voice votes. The council chair later noted the votes had been recorded by voice as 4 in favor and 2 opposed for the package of measures.