ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä City Council committee creating bill that would restrict panhandling

Under the draft bill — which will be changed at upcoming meetings — interactions between cars and pedestrians would be outlawed in the public right-of-way of many streets in the city.

‘Areas of Concern’

Restricted areas, or “Areas of Concern� as the bill says, include:

• Roads with speed limits of at least 25 mph
• Medians of roads less than 10 feet wide
• Roads with poor or no lighting at night
• Roads during inclement weather conditions that limit visibility of pedestrians and drivers
• Roads under construction

The city can post signage at the areas and publish a list of the Areas of Concern online.

The draft bill prohibits several actions in these places, including:

• Interfering with “safe and efficientâ€� traffic flow
• Being in the roadway or median, unless a person is crossing the road
• Physical interactions or exchanges of items between people in the roadway/median and drivers

As currently written, here are the penalties:

• First offense: Verbal warning
• Second offense: Written warning
• Third and future offenses: $100 fine or community service

Potential issues

Some council members raised issues about vagueness, referencing parts of the ordinance that prohibit “any person to stand, sit, or otherwise remain� in the right-of-way of the Areas of Concern.

City Attorney Kevin Baker told the committee he read the ordinance as including the sidewalk in the public right-of-way.

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits targeting specific forms of speech, so this ordinance also would prohibit situations such as sports team fundraising or political candidate “honk-and-waves� in the Areas of Concern.

At-large Councilmember Emmett Pepper told the Gazette-Mail he is concerned the bill could open the city up to litigation.

“There’s no question that we should always be working to improve pedestrian and vehicle safety,� he said. “Hopefully, we can have a broader and more robust discussion about pedestrian and vehicle safety at future meetings about this bill.�

This is not the first time ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä has tried to pass restrictions on this type of activity. A 2017 bill was never considered by the full council because of litigation concerns, and council members rejected a bill with restrictions on standing in intersections 18-9 in 2021.

Wheeling has not been sued over its ordinance, Baker told the committee.

Intent of the bill

Committee Chairman Chad Robinson told members the intent of the bill is the safety of the public, referencing panhandlers standing in the median of Kanawha City construction zones or in blocked-off lanes where drivers are exiting quickly from the interstate.

“I understand individuals need help, but it has gotten to be a problem in the city,� he said. “I’m here to try to move these individuals along to create a situation where it’s more safe.�

What’s next

Robinson told the Gazette-Mail he was encouraged by the discussion about the bill, which lasted about 45 minutes Monday night.

He’s working on some changes to the bill, such as adjusting the speed limit for an Area of Concern and having signage targeted at drivers stopping, instead of pedestrians standing.

The bill will be introduced to the council at the Dec. 2 meeting, and then sent back to Robinson’s committee for more work.

In other business

City Council members took up and approved one item Monday night: $38,950 to replace roofing at the Smith Street Station Apartment building, which is owned by the city.