The overview
The ordinance changes were first presented by Georgetown Police Chief Cory Tchida in March. One amendment will make it unlawful to sit or lay down on public property downtown, and requires someone to receive a violation before any action is taken within a 12 month period.
A separate parking ordinance amendment will prevent people from distributing food and goods in publicly-owned or operated parking areas unless otherwise authorized.
For almost a decade, the Helping Hands of Georgetown nonprofit has parked at the Georgetown Public Library to distribute meals to unhoused people and low-income families weekly.
In an email to Community Impact, Georgetown resident Michelle Augustine said the nonprofit program will need to locate private property to continue food distribution.
What they’re saying
During the June 24 meeting, Augustine, who is also a member of the Georgetown Coalition for the Unhoused, said she remains concerned about the program's food distribution capabilities in public spaces and parking areas.
“It seems like that's going to fall a lot to the nonprofits and the churches in our community to address food insecurity," Augustine said.
Coalition members and others want to collaborate with city officials to navigate the unhoused community situation in downtown Georgetown, she said.
“We have begun our efforts to educate our clients about the upcoming ordinance of sitting and laying down so in order to prepare them, and in order to mentor them to be good community citizens,” Augustine said.
Georgetown resident Dwight Richter said the coalition was hoping for more time before council members approved the ordinances.
“Please think about that going forward before you pass any more of these ordinances,” Richter said. “Maybe we need a little more dialog before you do that.”
On June 10, Tchida said law enforcement will use the ordinances as a tool to handle “recalcitrant," or uncooperative, people, but the police department is not suggesting the ordinances will fix the unhoused situation in Georgetown.
"The issue of the homeless and unhoused is a community problem that requires community solutions," Tchida said June 10.
One more thing
The ordinances are effective 10 days after publication, according to city documents. Read an in-depth report from the ordinance’s first reading at the June 10 city council meeting here.
