‘Hot button issue’: Peoria wants to rein in panhandlers but can’t tread on free speech – Peoria Journal Star

PEORIA Panhandling has been a hot topic for years, but members of the Peoria City Council have taken a keen interest in it, saying they have gotten an increased number of calls from their constituents about the matter.

At Tuesday night's council meeting, councilmembers all seemed in agreement that they needed to take action.

Chuck Grayeb, who represents the city's 2nd District, says it's common sense to keep people out of the roadway and out of traffic. He takes umbrage with people who say this is being done to punish those who are in need.

"It's a hot button issue only for people who want to assert their moral superiority," he said. "Peoria wants to help anyone and anybody who is hurting and who needs a roof over their head or a meal."

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But, he said, those who are often out panhandling aren't willing to abide by the rules and, thus, create a safety hazard.

Added At-large Councilwoman Beth Jensen: "It's a quality of life issue. It's the broken window syndrome. If we just let broken windows go, then things get worse and it adds to a deteriorating situation (across the city)."

Peoria adopted an ordinance in 2003 that regulated panhandling. One had been in place prior, but the 2003 changes gave panhandling a definition:"any solicitation made in person upon any street, public way, public place or park in the city, in which a person requests an immediate donation of money or other gratuity from another person and includes but is not limited to seeking donations."

That did not include passively standing with a sign, nor did it allow "aggressive panhandling which is where a person touches another person in the hopes of getting a donation or money."

Panhandling was barred from sundown to sunrise and also in certain areas, such asnear ATMs or sidewalk cafes.

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In 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court held that ordinances that barred panhandlers from holding signs infringed upon free speech and, thus, were illegal.

Then in 2018, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, which sits in Chicago, weighed in on a challenge to Springfield's panhandling ordinance, which barred such acts in the city's historic part of town, and also struck down those ordinances.

The issue was simple. A city could not regulate the content of the speech, which is what the panhandling ordinances did. Rather, a rule had to apply to everyone across the board to pass muster.

As such, the city repealed its ordinance regarding panhandling in 2018 to comply with the court decisions.

'Panhandling' unsafe in the median

In place now are ordinances that prohibit vehicles or drivers from blocking the right of way. The city is also looking to place several signs around the area that state "panhandling or soliciting is unsafe in the median."

The idea, City Manager Patrick Urich said, was to discourage motorists particularly but also the actual panhandlers from being in the road or on the narrow medians. It doesn't discourage actual panhandling, nor does it put a barrier on people standing on a sidewalk, he said.

The number of signs as well as the locations are being determined now, he said. The city's legal team as well as the Peoria Police Department are trying to come up with locations and to prioritize where the first signs should go.

Grayeb asked for an amendment to the existing ordinance regarding cars stopping in the roadway that would include pedestrians. He thinks that's a good way tobar people from being in the road with signs and not run afoul of the free speech issue.

And he's not worried about what effect it might have on charities thatsolicit there.

"I brought this up years ago, back in the '90s, when I expressed concern about the firefighters passing the boot. People should not be in street," he said.

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Jensen sought to have a definition for aggressive panhandling put in as well. She saidshe's been contacted by many people who say they have had their car windows knocked on and were frightened. Others, she said, are trying to avoid panhandlers and come close to causing accidents.

Sid Ruckriegel, an at-large councilman, said the situation is becoming more and more common.

"This is a safety hazard not only for those that are standing and sitting on the small concrete islands or walking in the roadways coming up to cars but also to our drivers who can become distracted or who worry about accidentally hitting an individual," he said. "Just in the past few weeks, several people have reached out to me about a wreck caused in just such a manner or having to avoid causing an accident.

He advocated at Tuesday's council meeting for Peoria to reach out to its social service agencies, which, he said, come in contact with many of those who panhandle. A day later, he saidoutreach was just part of the plan.

"Signage, educational and a change in localordinance language all arepart of the discussion. With this is coupled the connection of individuals to needed community resources.I think with the help of the Legal Department, Public Works and(police) Chief Echevarria, as well as having input from a number of local social agencies, the plan put forth Tuesday night can start to curb this potentially dangerous behavior.

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'Hot button issue': Peoria wants to rein in panhandlers but can't tread on free speech - Peoria Journal Star