David Michael Miller
Soglin: “Pile it up neatly.”
Madison Mayor Paul Soglin isn't giving up on an ordinance that would restrict when homeless residents can sleep on city sidewalks. The measure was batted down by alders during the Sept. 20 Common Council meeting. At a press conference Friday, Soglin said he’ll try again in 90 days — the earliest he can legally re-introduce legislation. Soglin says the proposal is very simple: “People have to pick up their stuff.”
“Pile it up neatly,” says Soglin, referring to bedding and other belongings. “It doesn’t have to be removed, we aren’t saying that. Just pick it up. So it’s not the feeling that we are walking through somebody’s 12-year-old kid’s week-[old] mess with underwear and clothing and bedding strewn all over the place.”
Police recently stepped up their presence at the top of State Street — where homeless people and others tend to gather. Soglin says “bad behavior” continues to occur in the troublespot, noting heavy-drug use, drug-selling, urination and defecation. The mayor says if belongings are “stored neatly,” it will help with more serious issues.
“It’s not like we don’t have services,” says Soglin. “What eventually will happen — if we have rules and responsibilities to go along with our compassion — it will get more people to avail themselves to these services.”
Soglin adds that his proposal isn’t a total ban on sleeping or storing belongings on sidewalks. But it would prohibit lying down on public rights of way in the Central Business District between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. After one verbal warning, violators would receive a fine of $10, which would increase to $25 for each subsequent offense.
Alders Ledell Zellers, Amanda Hall, Shiva Bidar-Sielaff, Marsha Rummel, Zach Wood, Maurice Cheeks, Larry Palm, Sara Eskrich, Rebecca Kemble, Mark Clear and Matthew Phair voted to reject the proposal. Alders Sheri Carter and Denise DeMarb were absent during Tuesday’s vote. Soglin says during the debate, council members repeatedly mentioned “coming up with something else” to combat challenges surrounding homelessness.
“The phrase ‘something else’ is not a solution,” Soglin says. “That’s bullshit.”
Ald. Rebecca Kemble says she’s unlikely to change her mind if the council takes up the proposal a second time.
“And here’s who else I don’t think will change their mind: The Equal Opportunities Commission. The [City-County] Homeless Issues Committee. The Downtown Coordinating Committee. All of which voted this proposal down,” says Kemble.
Nonetheless, the mayor urges residents to contact their council representatives in hopes of a different outcome next time the measure is taken up.
Declares the mayor: “Now is the time for the people of this city to act.”
