Colorado Springs City Council passes first vote for expanded ‘Sit-Lie’ Ordinance
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - The Colorado Springs City Council passed an expansion for its "Sit-Lie" Ordinance in a 7-2 vote. It's the first of two votes. The ordinance isn't in effect yet; city council will need to vote "yes" on it again on Jan. 28 for it to go into effect.
RELATED: City of Colorado Springs could expand ‘Sit-Lie’ ordinance
Under a Sit-Lie Ordinance, citations are written for people found to be lying down, sitting, or sleeping in public spaces such as in front of stores or businesses.
A Sit-Lie Ordinance is already in effect for most of South Nevada Avenue to Tejon Street, down to Cheyenne Road.
The expansion, if passed, would cover the other side of South Nevada Avenue to Wahsatch Avenue.
"Curb appeal is very important to a business, especially a small business owner," David Kilburn, owner of Diamond Barber Co., shared with KRDO13. "The way it looks initially matters to people. If somebody pulls up and it doesn't look good, looks like trash or somebody's sleeping outside of your business, I probably don't want to take my kids in there, you know?"
Kilburn was excited that the city council was moving in on the ordinance. His business would be within the new expansion.
"It's exciting to us because it'll help our business grow and we won't have so many things against us and more things for us," Kilburn said.
Before voting, Avila said she vehemently opposed the ordinance and would like to see more money going into mental health services.
"We're trying to ordinance these people out of existence," Jenna Dolecek a local advocate and Colorado Springs resident told KRDO13. "That's not going to happen. These people aren't going to magically disappear. You know, whether they get a ticket or not, they're still going to be here."
Dolecek was the only citizen who spoke before the city council ahead of the vote on the expanded ordinance. She tells KRDO13 the ordinance won't fix any of the big problems and will only push people away and create more barriers to them getting off the streets.
"Incurring any [criminal] charges kicks you off the Section 8 waiting list, no matter how long it's been. That prevents somebody from then being able to go and access, affordable housing," Dolecek said.
Colorado Springs Police say they don't arrest anyone because of the Sit-Lie Ordinance. They only write a ticket or citation.
However, if you don't pay that ticket then it turns into a criminal charge and Dolecek says that makes it much more difficult to find affordable housing.
Dolecek, similar to Councilmember Availa, said she wants to see more funds reallocated to mental health services.
During the presentation, a lieutenant with the police department said the expansion of the ordinance would have only resulted in three more tickets issued in violation of the Sit-Lie ordinance.
A spokesperson for CSPD told KRDO13, “The passage of expanding this ordinance will be a minimal change in operations for CSPD.” They said this won't lead to more patrols by officers either.
The ordinance has not officially passed yet. City council needs to pass it on the second vote for it to go into effect. That vote will happen on Jan 28.
