Carbondale City Council will hold a special meeting on Friday, March 20 to address an ordinance that would ban public camping in the city as well as a discussion that sets clear boundaries and expectations for communication between the city manager, City Council and city staff.

It remains unclear what prompted the discussion on communication expectations within the city council. According to the agenda, City Manager Stan Reno requested the discussion item. Reno did not return a call from the Daily Egyptian on Thursday seeking comment.

The ordinance under consideration would declare public camping to be a “nuisance” unless it is on land that the city has authorized for the specific use of public camping, and would impose fines on those who violate that.

According to the agenda, the ordinance is meant to create a structure of clear, set rules on the use of public property for camping as well as addressing health and safety concerns involved with such encampments.

By addressing these public concerns and clarifying the rules, the ordinance will, according to the agenda packet, “provide a structured regulatory framework for enforcement while allowing the City Council the ability to designate specific areas, if any, where camping may be permitted through future action.”

Calls from the Daily Egyptian to the First Presbyterian Church and emails to Good Samaritan Ministries — all organizations in Carbondale that provide services for homeless people — did not receive a response on Thursday.

News Reporter Orion Wolf can be reached at [email protected] or orionwolf6 on Instagram

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