Council asks city manager to draft ordinance addressing abuse of city services and anonymous harassment calls
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Summary
A council member requested the city manager and police draft an ordinance to address repeated, anonymous misuse of city services (nonemergency calls, code enforcement and other department contacts) that residents say has harassed neighbors for years; council seconded the request and directed staff to return with an ordinance or options.
At the Feb. 4 meeting a council member asked the city manager to return to council with an ordinance, drafted in coordination with the Police Department, intended to curb repetitive, abusive use of city services that residents say is being used to harass neighbors.
The council member said the conduct has occurred repeatedly in a neighborhood in their district for at least six years and includes anonymous calls to the police nonemergency line, repeated complaints to code enforcement and calls to department heads about minor perceived slights. The council member said the behavior has left neighbors feeling "terrorized" by the repeated contacts and requested the city pursue an ordinance to give staff and police tools to stop the misuse.
Another council member seconded the request. The motion was a direction to staff to prepare an ordinance or options for council consideration; the item will be returned as a future agenda item for council review and potential formal action.
Why it matters: the request seeks to protect residents from what council described as ongoing harassment that consumes city resources and police time, and asks staff to propose enforceable options that respect constitutional and statutory protections while curbing abusive use of municipal reporting lines.
