Champaign council votes down ordinance to ban public camping

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WAND) - Champaign City Council voted down a public camping ordinance Tuesday night that some groups said unfairly targeted homeless people and would have had devastating impacts on the community.

Tuesday's council meeting saw a large group of public speakers against the ordinance. Council unanimously voted down the ordinance after a robust discussion to find other solutions to a growing problem. After the vote, the council chambers erupted in cheers and applause.

Council had considered deferring the ordinance but later chose to take a straight vote.

While some city officials said the ordinance was about safety, homeless advocacy groups argued otherwise.

"We have twice as many homeless residents with half as many emergency beds as we did ten years ago, and many of those emergency beds are slated to close this spring," said Danielle Chynoweth, the supervisor for Cunningham Township and chair of the Continuum Service Providers for the Homeless.

A U.S. Supreme Court ruling last summer allowed cities to enforce camping bans, but advocates said these rules are essentially bans on the homeless and harm more than they help.

Dozens of Illinois communities have enacted public camping bans. In March, the Illinois Department of Human Rights sent a letter to local governments emphasizing protections for homeless people under state law.

State lawmakers are considering changes to existing law regarding homeless individuals and potential discrimination or a lack of access to public services.

Many community members felt Champaign's ban could have had a domino effect.

Champaign City Attorney Thomas Yu said the ban would not have imposed fines or other legal action on people who are determined to be homeless. Yu said the ordinance's language was purposely vague.

"People will go further and further into invisibility, and that will make them even more at risk of death in the harsh winter due to substance abuse, etcetera," Chynoweth said.

Many shelters are prepared to take in those in need for the winter, but come spring, there will be fewer options.

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