Hampton delays camping/storage ordinance as city forms stakeholder group after public outcry

Michael Cheever and several other callers used the council’s public comment period to oppose the proposed camping and storage ordinance, arguing it would punish people experiencing homelessness rather than address causes such as rising rents and limited housing.

"Hampton shouldn't go through with the proposed camping and storage ordinance, as it only criminalizes homelessness," Michael Cheever told council, citing a local median rent rise from $980.66 in 2019 to $1,582.35 in 2024 and warning the measure would push people into courts and cycles of fines and incarceration.

City Manager Michael Bunting responded during the staff remarks that the council would pause the ordinance and convene a roughly 20‑person stakeholder group representing business, neighborhood and homeless‑advocate perspectives. He said the ordinance had been drafted broadly to allow police to ask people to leave when individuals pose a disruption, and that the council never intended mass arrests of people experiencing homelessness. "We asked the council to give us another 60 to 90 days to have the stakeholder group have ample time to work through other potential creative solutions," Bunting said.

Bunting reiterated that an ordinance requires a stated penalty if it prohibits conduct, but he emphasized training and operational directives to avoid punitive enforcement of homelessness. Several public speakers, including Joshua Moran, urged council to reject the ordinance entirely when it returns to the agenda.

Council did not vote on the ordinance tonight; staff will report back after the stakeholder process and additional community engagement.