Council debates removing shelter-bed availability requirement from encampment ordinance

City Attorney Jan Jarman reviewed Wichita’s encampment ordinance history and framed the key policy question the council debated at the workshop: should the ordinance’s shelter-bed-availability requirement be removed?

Jarman explained that the bed-availability language was added by council changes after 2013 and that staff had recommended removing it in 2024 to reduce enforcement complexity. "The shelter requirement that we've added into our ordinance is not legally necessary at this time," Jarman said, noting that the 10th Circuit (the city’s circuit) has not required such a bed-availability standard and that the U.S. Supreme Court decision has changed how jurisdictions approach camping rules. The council heard enforcement data from police: the department reported seven citations since 2021 but documented hundreds of campsite cleanups (345 in 2025; about 400 so far in 2026). Deputy Chief told council that most people move when asked; citations are given when individuals refuse to remove campsites.

Dan Clifford, executive director of 2nd Light, said programmatic case-management resources are constrained and that a bed alone is not the outcome: "A bed is not an outcome," he said, arguing for more case managers and program beds rather than simply changing ordinance language. Councilors expressed divided views: some said removing the bed requirement might reduce legal liability and give police clearer authority to require moves; others warned it would do little without additional shelter and case-management capacity and could appear inhumane. Several council members requested the item be scheduled as new business with public comment; the mayor and other members asked the city manager to consult widely with shelters, the Continuum of Care and county partners and return with options and community input.