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Oak Harbor adopts stay‑out court orders for Southwest Business District to address concentrated drug activity
Summary
The council adopted Ordinance 2034 amending Oak Harbor Municipal Code to allow district and superior courts to issue 'stay out of designated area' (SOTA) orders for people convicted of drug‑related charges within two proposed zones; council selected Map Option 2 after a presentation from Chief Tony Slowick citing large increases in calls for service in parts of the Southwest Business District.
The Oak Harbor City Council on Dec. 2 unanimously adopted Ordinance 2034, establishing a legal framework for courts to impose "stay out of designated area" (SOTA) orders that would prohibit certain individuals with drug‑related charges or convictions from entering specified geographic zones in the Southwest Business District.
Chief Tony Slowick presented the proposal and described community and business concerns about an increase in drug‑related activity. He summarized call‑for‑service data for the area around Southwest Barlow Street and adjacent strips and said the dataset supported two alternative boundary options. Slowick said the relevant statutes and court authority were available (he cited RCWs during the presentation) and that the tool is intended to reduce repeat criminal behavior and increase public and business safety by providing an enforceable court order the probation department can monitor.
Council members discussed practical questions that staff had vetted with courts and the prosecuting attorney’s office: whether grocery stores and pharmacies within zones would undermine access to essential services, how courts could tailor orders to permit access to necessary services, and whether businesses would be asked to enforce orders. Slowick said courts can carve out essential services in probation conditions and that the police would not post lists of people under orders; enforcement information would be available to officers through criminal justice systems.
Councilmember Marshall moved to adopt Ordinance 2034 with Map Option 2 (a slightly larger southern boundary that includes portions of the Bayshore commercial strip); the motion was seconded and passed unanimously.
Next steps: the ordinance authorizes the courts to issue SOTA orders and staff will coordinate with the prosecuting attorney and courts on implementation details and public information.
