Jacksonville now has a no-camping ordinance.
The council rebuffed attempts to delay a vote from advocates for the homeless, and a motion to table and delay for two weeks failed for a lack of a second.
The council voted 6 to 1 to approve the ordinance that lays out a $25 fine for those who violate the ordinance. Jacksonville police chief Doug Thompson told the council there would be a 2 to 3 month period of educating those who attempt to camp within the city.
Former Jacksonville police chaplain Alan Bradish urged the council to delay the vote so the ordinance could be adjusted.
He says the big question at 6 PM during the week that a camper would ask a police officer is the question all should ask.
That question is…where do I go?
Jada Lutzke has also argued on the behalf of the homeless, and asked for the ordinance to be tabled. She had a petition with 200 signatures asking for a delay.
Alderwoman Darcella Speed was the lone council member to vote against final reading. Alderwoman Erin Williams was ill, and couldn’t attend, and alderman Joe Lockman was absent because of a vacation.
Bradish has proposed a restoration center, but no building has been identified yet.
The restoration center would be a place where the homeless could go for a night if no other place is available. But, no location has been found yet.
Alderwoman Terrisa Heape supported the ordinance, but acknowledged more work needs to be done. She is hoping the ordinance could be amended sometime soon.
Salvation Army Captain Justian Corliss is working on an advisory task force to find that center. He says the first step is to develop a street outreach team that could talk to the homeless, providing the city data it doesn’t have now.
Bradish doesn’t discount that this is a responsible ordinance, only that it was irresponsible to act on it now before all the information is in.