MORGANTOWN — In a 4-3 vote held at 1:25 a.m. Wednesday morning — six hours and 14 minutes after the meeting was gaveled into session — Morgantown City Council adopted the ordinance outlawing “camping” on public property.
The vote split just as it did on first reading, with Mayor Joe Abu-Ghannam and councilors Danielle Trumble and Brian Butcher voting in the minority.
The law defines camp/camping to mean “pitch, erect or occupy camp facilities, or to use camp paraphernalia or both for the purpose of habitation, as evidenced by the use of camp paraphernalia,” and bans it on all public property.
The ordinance says an initial violation will result in a warning. A second violation will result in a fine of no more than $200 and a third violation within 12 months can result in a fine of up to $500 and/or up to 30 days in jail.
However, “No citation shall be issued, nor any criminal penalty imposed, under this Section unless a person in violation of this Article has been offered alternate shelter and refused the offer.”
“Shelter” would include an alternate location where the person may shelter overnight, including, but not limited to, a place in an emergency shelter or any alternate indoor or outdoor location …”
Further, alternative sentencing will be possible if violators notify the municipal court that they need treatment for substance abuse or mental health issues.
Prior to passage, council unanimously approved an amendment put forward by Butcher to add case management for housing to the existing provisions for substance use disorder or mental health treatment in terms of the alternative sentencing process.
The length of the meeting, which ultimately ended at 2:05 a.m., came down to the public hearing prior to the vote.
While the mayor or a majority of council have the ability to limit speakers during public hearings — much in the same way the body limits standard public comment to four minutes — they chose not to do so.
Some 30 speakers provided five hours and 13 minutes of feedback on the ordinance. Of that number, two spoke in support of the law.
As it regularly has been each meeting since the topic of a citywide camping ban was first raised, the Morgantown City Hall meeting chamber was packed.
An even larger crowd gathered in the building’s ground-floor lobby to watch a livestream of the proceedings.
The law will take effect on Oct. 4.
If no emergency shelter — the Catholic Charities triage shelter in Hazel’s House of Hope — is available the day the law is to take effect, it will be delayed until the shelter is opened.
