Council amends camping ordinance to require 8 days' notice; debate centers on enforcement and services

The Columbus City Council on Aug. 12 approved an amendment to the city's ordinance prohibiting camping on public property, adding an explicit eight-calendar-day notice requirement before the city or Public Works removes unattended personal property.

What the ordinance does: The amendment to paragraph E requires the Columbus Police Department to provide a written or oral notice before enforcing subsection B; the notice must give alleged violators eight calendar days to vacate. Paragraph F was changed so that Public Works must wait a minimum of eight calendar days after notification before removing and transporting personal property to the landfill.

Why the change was proposed: Councilor Charmaine Crabb introduced a substitute amendment she said codifies the seven- or eight-day outreach timeline used by local service providers. Crabb read the changes into the record and moved the substitute. She told the council the amendment aligns enforcement with the community partners' seven- to eight-day engagement practice described earlier by United Way and Home for Good.

Council debate and law enforcement input: Police and community-policing leaders said they welcomed the codified timeline and stressed officers still need discretion. Sergeant Katina Williams told council enforcement had rarely resulted in arrests and that officers prefer to rely on outreach and voluntary movement: "As long as we can use discretion, yes, sir," she said when asked whether officers had the ability to pause removals in complicated situations.

Public comment: Dozens of residents and service providers spoke during the public comment period. Speakers urging caution said criminalizing camping would harm people with complex needs and veterans, and would transfer costs to jails and emergency health services. Faith leaders, nonprofit staff and volunteers urged the council to pair any enforcement with usable shelter capacity and services; several speakers urged more immediate investments in shelter, sanitation and outreach rather than broader prohibitions.

Vote: The ordinance amendment passed on a council roll call (9—1). A few council members urged the administration to return with funding options for sanitation and cleanup teams and to coordinate code enforcement, Public Works and outreach partners.

Ending: The ordinance now requires notification and an eight-calendar-day minimum before removal of unattended personal property; council and staff framed the change as a procedural step that must be matched by the task force and service investments discussed in the earlier homelessness presentation.