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Public commentator urges stronger enforcement on street camping and related standards
Summary
At the Dec. 2 meeting Dean Hewitt told the council that street camping and enforcement failures are worsening, cited ADA sidewalk violations and a nonprofit offering a $100 reward to recover shopping carts despite an existing ordinance.
Dean Hewitt, speaking during the public-comment period at Shelton City Council’s Dec. 2 meeting, urged the council to strengthen enforcement of street-camping rules and to hold nonprofit and city systems to measurable outcomes.
"It's getting worse, not better," Hewitt said, citing repeated sidewalk and garbage concerns at River Park and saying a local nonprofit, Nifty Thrifty, had offered a $100 reward to recover its own shopping carts "when we have a city ordinance pertaining to shopping carts." He said that reliance on donor dollars for such recovery is "100% unacceptable" and argued the pattern shows an enforcement gap.
Hewitt referenced a 2021 ordinance addressing street camping and a low number of citations since revisions. He urged the council to consider stronger enforcement, outcome-based funding for nonprofits and mandatory treatment or life-skills programs when appropriate. Council members thanked him for his testimony; no staff response or immediate policy action was recorded during the public-comment item.
The council did not take formal action on Hewitt’s requests during the meeting; the record shows the item was entered as part of public comment.
