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Fort Myers asks legal to draft ordinance to enforce state ban on public camping
Summary
After reviewing Florida's House Bill 1365, the Fort Myers City Council directed the legal department to prepare a local ordinance that would give police a local enforcement mechanism for public camping on city property and to advertise the ordinance for public hearings.
Mayor Kevin Anderson opened the workshop and said the council needed a local enforcement mechanism to comply with House Bill 1365, a recent state law restricting public camping on public property.
City Manager Marty Long explained the bill's core provisions and exceptions and told council that counties and municipalities must act to avoid civil litigation: "County or municipality may not authorize or otherwise allow any person to regularly engage in public camping or sleeping on any public property," and residents or businesses can bring civil actions under a delayed effective date in 2025. Long noted the statute provides limited appropriations to help cities comply.
Deputy City Attorney Ron Denty reviewed a draft ordinance that mirrors the statute but adds a penalty structure to give police a clear tool for enforcement. "A 2nd and subsequent violation could be a fine of not to exceed $500 or 60 days in jail or both, and an arrest must be preceded by the issuance of a civil citation," Denty said, describing the sequence of warnings, civil citations and penalties.
Council members questioned how enforcement would work when shelter capacity is limited; several members urged collaboration with Lee County human services rather than relying solely on citations. Councilmember Streets cautioned that enforcement should be humane and paired with services, saying the council should "look at it from a holistic approach." Long and city staff described county diversion resources and the city's "hot team" outreach but said immediate shelter capacity was limited.
After discussion, the council agreed by consensus to have the legal department prepare the ordinance for formal consideration and to advertise it for public hearings at the next available agenda. The city manager said the ordinance would come back for two hearings if directed.
The next procedural step is for legal staff to draft a locally enforceable ordinance consistent with HB 1365 and present it for council action and public comment.
