Opponents say Newark ordinance targets homeless

NEWARK, Ohio (WCMH) -- Newark City Council is considering adopting an ordinance that would make camping on the city’s public property illegal, a move opponents said is targeting the city's homeless population.

Council had a first reading of the ordinance during Monday night’s meeting and dozens of community members showed up to express their opinion on the issue.

The ordinance states it is a matter of public safety, but some residents said it would punish people for being homeless and sleeping on the streets.

The ordinance calls for anyone caught camping on public property to be fined. If the person is a repeat offender, they could go to jail.

Watch: Opponents say Newark ordinance targets homeless

Cary Loughman is the executive director of The Main Place in Newark, an organization that provides resources for people experiencing homelessness. Loughman said putting homeless people in jail is not the answer.

“It really doesn’t get to the real problem of why are there so many homeless in Newark anyhow and that’s because there’s a housing shortage," Loughman said. "Housing availability is hard to find right now."

Councilmember Bill Cost Jr. agreed with Loughman and said he has already decided to vote no on the ordinance.

“Putting a homeless person in jail is not going to solve the problem," he said. "They’re still going to be homeless when they come out, they’re still not going to have anything other than a record, so I’d much rather see a different proposal."

Councilmember Mark Labutis said that Newark does need to keep its streets clean and this ordinance could also be a way to connect people to resources.

“I think a lot of people are thinking we just want to jail all the homeless people," he said. "It’s not meant for that. As a city, we want to offer people services first and go that route. We want to see people get better and improve themselves.”

During the meeting, Labutis and other council members shared that they have not made up their minds about how they will be voting, saying they'll continue to listen to what the public has to say.

“We are weighing both of those sides of the coin most definitely," Labutis said. "It’s something that is not an easy decision to come to and we wrestle both ways with it.”

Newark City Council is expected to vote on the ordinance during its Oct. 21 meeting. Until then, council members said they expect to hear much more from citizens.