Chamber Getting Testy About Panhandlers

The Chamber of Commerce wants the city to start cracking down on the 'passive' panhandlers that operate on the east side of town, notably those that trade shifts near the intersection of 13 and Giant City Road and hold signs asking for help (I am always amused by the "Help Wanted" sign on the Burger King less than 50 yards away. I have heard that the Burger King manager has offered assorted panhandlers work and gotten turned down). Here's the press release the Chamber sent out yesterday:

The Chamber’s Board of Directors last week approved a resolution calling on the council to control or restrict panhandling and similar activities, especially on the community’s east side. The resolution has been sent individually to each member of the Council, Chamber Executive Director Les O’Dell said. The Chamber resolution includes nine suggested actions.

                “These bullet points are simple changes to the code or examples of steps other communities have taken to combat this problem,” O’Dell said. “Our goal is not to infringe on anyone’s personal rights, but it is to improve the appeal of Carbondale as a great place to shop, dine, attend school and live.”

                In presenting the resolution, the Chamber said the presence of individuals holding signs which state a need for help is a safety concern, especially in high traffic areas.

                The Chamber was partially responsible for a change in city ordinance several years ago dealing with aggressive panhandling. The new resolution looks to further regulate both aggressive and passive panhandling. Suggestions from the resolution include requiring panhandlers to obtain a free, city-issued license; treat panhandlers as solicitors; requiring them to wear reflective vests; increasing the minimum distance a panhandler can be from an automated teller machine and prohibiting panhandlers from making fraudulent statements.

                The full resolution:

We, the Government Affairs Committee and the Board of Directors of the Carbondale Chamber of Commerce, representing more than 400 businesses and organizations in our community, urge the Carbondale City Council to consider one or more revisions to the Carbondale revised city code to address the growing and on-going problem with panhandlers, particularly those frequenting the retail sector of the city’s east side.

We feel that the presence of these “sign-holders,” while currently legal, is a source of an unnecessary blight to our community, especially the restaurants, retailers and other businesses in this area. The presence of these individuals--many of whom have unpaid citations with the City and lengthy criminal histories--is distracting to motorists (a very serious safety concern at extremely busy intersections). Additionally, their presence negatively impacts the appeal of businesses in this area, potentially reducing customer visits, revenue for these business and ultimately revenue to the City of Carbondale in the form of city sales tax. Furthermore, the presence of these individuals may cause prospective Southern Illinois University students and their families to view our community as unsafe, leading them to enroll in other institutions.

We urge the Carbondale City Council to take action to control or restrict these panhandling activities. Our research has led us to several options worthy of consideration:

·         Amend Section 14-4-10 of the Carbondale City Code to change the definition of panhandling to include both “passive” and “active” (or “aggressive”) panhandling.

·         Creation of “Demonstration-Free Zones” in the business-oriented parts of the community.

·         Treatment of panhandlers as solicitors, requiring a city permit. Such a permit could be free of cost, requiring only registration with the city. Permits could be pending a criminal background check and would not be issued if the requestor has any outstanding financial balances with the city. Fingerprinting also may be a requirement.

·         Make licenses/permits expire within 90 days and/or make such permits revocable.

·         Make panhandlers subject to Section 5-5B of the city code pertaining to solicitors.

·         Require panhandlers to wear a photo ID (or permit) at all times. The reverse of the permit could include a list of charitable services available to those truly in need.

·         Because these individuals are standing along busy roadways and at busy intersections, require them to wear fluorescent safety vests.

·         Prohibit these individuals from knowingly making any fraudulent or misleading representations (by any means) including, but not limited to falsely stating that the solicitor is from out of town and stranded, falsely that he or she is or was a member of the armed forces; stating falsely that the solicitor is homeless or falsely stating that they are seeking money for charitable purposes.

·         Prohibiting solicitation within 1,000 feet of a bank, financial institution, ATM, playground, school, retail shopping facility or restaurant.

On behalf of our member-businesses and their customers we encourage you to address this issue and look forward to working with you to make Carbondale a more attractive community for business.