Posted on 06/13/2007 2:56:18 PM PDT by DogByte6RER
BERKELEY
Council passes plan to stop bad street behavior
Carolyn Jones, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Berkeley's City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to pass most of a sweeping plan to clear the streets of aggressive and disruptive behavior.
The Public Commons for Everyone Initiative passed 9-0 after months of debate among the council, homeless advocates, merchants and residents. The council instructed City Manager Phil Kamlarz to develop details of the implementation, which he will bring back to the council for further approval.
"This is a tolerant and caring community, but we do have our boundaries,'' said Mayor Tom Bates, the legislation's sponsor. "As a small city, we can never solve the drug and alcohol problems that play out on our streets, but this is one thing we can do."
The initiative cracks down on a wide range of behavior that some say make Berkeley's streets inhospitable to residents and visitors alike. Among the activities that will be banned are smoking near buildings in commercial areas, lying on the sidewalk, public urination and defecation, drinking in public, possessing a shopping cart and shouting in public.
The initiative is expected to go into effect late this year.
It is meant to expand portions of Bates' Telegraph Avenue revitalization plan across the city, especially downtown and the northern end of Shattuck Avenue, where merchants, residents and visitors have been complaining for years about disruptive street behavior.
While Berkeley has an array of services for its 800 or so homeless people, many refuse to participate or are not reached by social workers. The initiative is meant to force this group into counseling and rehabilitation through the criminal justice and social service systems.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Sigh..........
Nanny State PING.......
If they didn't kick smokers out to the curb maybe they wouldn't be having some of these problems.
Today I saw an employee at Family Dollar assembling a shopping cart for a customer who had just purchased it. I hope she doesn't get caught using it.
Oh good grief, I was thinking of supermarket shopping carts, I forgot about the ones you are talking about and I saw a bunch of them being purchased at Family Dollar just last week.........in fact I was planning on getting one this weekend. Thankfully I live in Virginia, not Berzerkley.
Actually, Berzerkeley has become nothing more than comic relief for the tourists.
As long as it is confined to Strawberry Hill. ;o)
What?!?! They’re going to ban public defecation? What Nazis.
Thanks for the ping!
That is where they keep their "possessions". Clothes cans to recycle, food...whatever. It serves as their portable "home". If they are banned, then the homeless can't bring their possessions into the area. Those possessions will be at the mercy of other homeless and most likely vanish. So basically anyone with anything to lose in a car won't go into the area.
Like a ban will stop them...
Berkeley is a honey pot for misfits and sponges. You just can’t pick and choose who sucks at the tit. Pass the popcorn. This should be a riot. Literally.
Smoking near buildings in commercial areas,
Of all thing to worry about
Unless of course, it's Saturday night...
Last year, George Beier ran for Berkeley City Council from District 7 on just this platform. He proposed to clean up the streets, eliminate sleeping in public places, crack down on crime and aggressive behavior by the homeless, and streamline business permitting in the Telegraph Avenue area.
He lost a close race against one of Berkeley’s old-line professional politicians. It looks like the City Council got the message, and is implementing his platform lock, stock and barrel.
I put this one in the “Win” column, even though Beier lost.
Oh, so you know what "The Big C" refers to...
Back when this package was opposed I joked that the wildly popular ban on public smoking was going to be used to run interference for the much more controversial ban on public defecation.
Moral of the Story: It is impossible to joke about Berkeley, California.
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