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Council weighs camping ordinance and downtown safety as businesses and service providers urge combined enforcement and outreach
Summary
Council members discussed a draft unlawful camping ordinance and a broad set of responses to public safety, substance use and homelessness downtown, including stepped-up enforcement of existing ordinances, a possible outreach hub and targeted patrols for Avenue A Park.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — City attorneys and councilors returned to a long-standing issue Sept. 2: how to respond to congregations of unhoused people, public intoxication, discarded needles and other behavior downtown and at Avenue A Park. The council heard hours of public comment from business owners, non-profit leaders, faith organizations and residents urging both enforcement and services.
Paul Brown, the city attorney, presented a draft camping ordinance for discussion and emphasized limits: the draft targets “unlawful camping” on public property but will not in itself resolve the complex social and health drivers leading to congregation at Avenue A Park. Brown cautioned the ordinance is a tool for some situations — for example, camping under a bridge on public property — but “by no stretch of the imagination is it going to address the problems at Avenue A…
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