The Albuquerque City Council voted to approve two ordinances late Monday night — in the name of public safety and quality of life — that will make it more difficult for homeless encampments to be located on public property. The measures, sponsored by City Councilor Renée Grout, addressed concerns with homeless activity at public playgrounds and encampments on city property in general.
The votes come at the end of a year when officials say they have tried to strike a balance between helping the homeless community and responding to the concerns of many constituents and business owners.
During public comment at City Council meetings on such measures — including Monday — attendees leaned heavily on the side of those who think those experiencing homelessness are being criminalized and the consequences of encampment sweeps ignored.
The “park maintenance and playground safety” ordinance makes sleeping, erecting tents or storing personal items illegal in and near playgrounds at city parks. Grout said the measure was critical to address the safety concerns of those who say they don’t feel safe, especially families with young children.
Enforcement of the ordinance would set out to further curb illegal camping, littering, vandalism, drug use and human waste.
“There are people who reach out to us on a daily basis, a weekly basis, they send us emails, and they love going to our city parks, and they are scared to go,” Grout said before the vote. “They matter, too. We need to listen to them as well.”
The measure passed 6-3. Those in favor were Grout, Councilors Dan Lewis, Joaquín Baca, Brook Bassan, Dan Champine and Louie Sanchez. Those opposed were Tammy Fiebelkorn, Klarissa Peña and Nichole Rogers.
Encampment clampdown
In addition, the “public camping regulations” ordinance prohibits public camping in unauthorized areas and on any city property — such as parks, streets and sidewalks.
The bill’s aim, Grout said, was to clarify current existing laws regarding illegal public camping, which typically carry a misdemeanor offense. City Attorney Lauren Keefe, who authored the measure, said there was a need for a legal clarity-enforcement balance.
For more: Proposed changes to city’s encampment policy questioned
“This bill would certainly give some clarity to our current laws and ordinances, without a lot of loopholes or checkerboarding applications to it,” Lewis said in an interaction with Keefe.
The measure passed 5-4. Those in favor were Grout, Lewis, Bassan, Champine and Sanchez. Those opposed were Baca, Fiebelkorn, Peña and Rogers.
A third encampment-related ordinance that sought to address abandoned shopping carts — which Grout, the bill’s sponsor, said can pose safety hazards and contribute to neighborhood blight — was withdrawn from consideration.
For more: Trio of ordinances seeks to curb effects of encampments
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