VINELAND — Issues with apparently homeless people using sidewalks and other public transit areas to sleep, or something hygienically worse, is moving the city to toughen its regulations.
The city is promising fines for offenders found sleeping, camping, or otherwise misusing rights-of-way, although only if initial offers of assistance such as transport to a shelter are refused.
But council members taking a first look at the proposed regulations on Tuesday night were not especially hopeful that they would be as effective as needed.
Councilman Paul Spinelli said the city already has legal signoffs from many property owners to remove homeless people on their behalf. Those interventions only work in a limited way, he said.
“You’re moving them from Point A,” Spinelli said. “They go to Point B. When they move to Point B, they move to Point C. Eventually, they get back to Point A, again.”
“They just circle around,” Council President Elizabeth Arthur said.
City Solicitor Richard Tonetta said sleeping in a right-of-way can be dangerous. More ordinance tightening is coming, too.
“We wanted to clarify that you can’t sleep or camp or anything like that in the public right-of-way,” Tonetta said. “So, this is one of many new ordinances that are going to be modifying and amending the Streets and Roads chapter of our book.”
Spinelli said one area business earlier on Tuesday experienced someone undressing, preparatory to defecating on the sidewalk. Police arrived and shooed the person away but the councilman said that sort of incident should result in more than a “move along” order.
