Grants Pass council rewrites camping rules, declares emergency and designates temporary "authorized resting sites" amid court injunction

Grants Pass — The City Council voted to rewrite city rules on sleeping and personal property in parks, consolidate camping restrictions into a single parks chapter, declare an emergency so the ordinance takes effect immediately, and adopt a resolution identifying temporary "authorized resting sites" in the downtown area.

City Attorney Stephanie Nudl told council the changes are intended to respond to a federal-civil-rights lawsuit and recent state law requiring any regulation of sitting, lying, sleeping or keeping warm and dry outdoors to be “objectively reasonable as to time, place and manner with regard to persons experiencing homelessness.” She said the revisions consolidate overlapping rules in Grants Pass Municipal Code chapter 5.61 and chapter 6.46 and add clearer definitions and site limits. "This action supports council's goal of leadership by amending the city laws to clarify and consolidate the laws regarding use of city parks and authorized resting sites," Nudl said.

Nut graf: The ordinance and companion resolution come amid litigation by Disability Rights Oregon, which obtained a preliminary injunction earlier this year blocking enforcement of parts of the city's camping ordinance. Council members and staff said the code rewrite and the city’s established sites are intended to address the court's concerns while preserving public-safety and park access.

The ordinance moves the prohibitions on sleeping on sidewalks and in doorways into chapter 5.61 and shifts camping-related definitions and removal procedures into parks code (chapter 6.46). Nudl said the draft includes a new definition of "authorized resting site," a required time limit for any designated site, an 8-by-8-foot maximum footprint per person, and a 3-foot buffer from people and park amenities. The code also adds a provision that personal property may not be attached to city property, fences or vegetation.

Nudl described the litigation timeline for council: on Jan. 30 the court issued a temporary restraining order, and on March 28 the court granted a preliminary injunction preventing enforcement of the camping provisions. The city has been told the injunction could be lifted if the municipality returns to a 150-person capacity for sites with Americans with Disabilities Act compliance; staff say the city met the 150-person/ADA requirements in April and the ordinance language refinements are the remaining step to ask the court to lift the injunction.

Police Chief told council his officers continue to see violent incidents tied to camps and said enforcement resources are strained. "Bottom line, it's not good," he said, describing recent assaults and resource-intensive calls that required tactical response and hospital transports.

Public comment at several points was sharply divided. Some downtown residents and business owners said the city was concentrating safety and quality-of-life problems near homes and shops and asked for alternatives and security measures. Resident Holly Reyes said she and neighbors are "completely overrun" and listed assaults, needles and trash as immediate concerns. Several other speakers, including business owners, asked the council to relocate the temporary sites away from the commercial core and to provide security, camera coverage and compensation for documented losses.

Other public speakers urged compassion and for city leaders to include lived experience when shaping the response. One camp resident, using the name Lionheart, urged the council to gather interviews and focus groups with people experiencing homelessness and argued that harsher conditions in camps fuel self-medication and instability.

Council action: the ordinance amending camping-related code provisions (converting and updating sections of 5.61 and adding numbered sections in 6.46, and declaring an emergency) passed on first and second readings and was read and passed with unanimous roll-call votes. Later the council adopted a companion resolution that identifies authorized resting sites; that resolution passed 5–2. Council members Rick and Indra voted no on the resolution; five councilors voted yes. Council discussion and the final votes show the split: most members said they wanted sites established in order to seek lifting of the injunction and to remove camping from parks, while dissenting members objected to the chosen locations and to the process.

What it means next: The ordinance takes immediate effect under its emergency clause. The resolution lists specific parking-lot and park locations designated as temporary sites (the council identified sites near Sixth Street and Seventh Street and two adjacent parcels near Seventh Street). Staff said the city can remove or change sites by resolution, and the length of stay at an authorized site is limited by the terms the council sets. Where the city allows an established site to be used, removal of personal property after the site’s posted length-of-stay must follow statutory notice requirements; for other park locations staff said immediate removal is allowed because parks are considered day-use. Nudl said the council’s amendments were intended to respond to the court's concern about vague or context-dependent code language.

Council members said they will continue to coordinate with the county, court counsel and service providers and monitor public-safety impacts. Several councilors urged additional outreach and assistance programs. Members also asked staff to explore ways to reduce the localized impacts on nearby residents and businesses, including looking at security and camera coverage and temporary parking measures for affected properties.

Ending: The council's actions set a short-term legal route to ask the court to lift its injunction, but they do not implement permanent housing or services; annexation, rezoning, or sheltering options will remain subject to separate processes, additional approvals and funding. Council members and residents said they expect more public meetings as the city implements the new code and manages the temporary sites going forward.