HomeMy WebLinkAbout6817 ORDINANCE NO. 6817
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
AUBURN, WASHINGTON, RELATING TO CAMPING AND
OCCUPYING CITY PROPERTY, AMENDING THOSE PORTIONS
OF ORDINANCE NO. 6781 PERTAINING TO SECTIONS
2.22.210, 2.22.220, AND 9.50.030 OF THE AUBURN CITY CODE,
AND ADDING A NEW SECTION ACC 2.22.240 TO THE AUBURN
CITY CODE
WHEREAS, in 2020, the City proposed Ordinance No. 6781 to the City Council.
Ordinance 6781 regulated camping and related activity on City property and designated
activity prohibited in the ordinance as a misdemeanor criminal offense with corresponding
potential criminal penalties;
WHEREAS, the City Council considered Ordinance 6781 at its study sessions on
July 27 and August 24, 2020, and at its regular Council meeting on September 8, 2020;
WHEREAS, at these meetings, the Council heard statements from City
representatives Jeff Tate and Kent Hay regarding the basis for Ordinance 6781 and the
reasons for its proposal to the Council;
WHEREAS, the Council voted on Ordinance 6781 at the September 8 Council
meeting. During the voting process, the Council revised Ordinance 6781 by motion to
replace its criminal offense designation and penalties with civil infraction penalties;
WHEREAS, the Council voted to adopt Ordinance 6781 as revised by motion;
WHEREAS, in an ongoing effort to address the problems associated with
homelessness, the City proposes this Ordinance with its below proposed revisions to
ACC 9.50.030 and ACC 2.22. This ordinance is intended to restore the criminal offense
designation and penalties originally contemplated for Ordinance 6781, and also to give
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March 25, 2021
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city enforcement personnel an additional legal option of issuing trespass admonishments
to persons camping in parks or on other city properties and providing for an appeal;
WHEREAS, in support of this ordinance the City offers the following additional
information regarding the homelessness problem in the City and the City's responsive
remedial efforts. This information was not presented to the Council or considered by the
Council when Ordinance 6781 was adopted:
• Environmental impacts: Homelessness and related activity has the
following environmental impacts on the City:
• Over the last 6 months the City has identified 43 different homeless
encampments on City-owned property. Twenty-nine (29) of these
encampments have been located within wetlands or within riparian
habitat areas that are adjacent to the Green River, White River or Mill
Creek, all of which provide important habitat to salmon;
• The City has identified encampments that have become flooded
during typical seasonal high water events. Flooding within wetlands
causes islands and hummocks that are sometimes dry to be
underwater. Seasonal flooding along rivers causes water to move at
high velocity through riverine floodplains. In both instances, clothing,
hypodermic needles, human waste, plastic, batteries, electronics,
bicycles, shopping carts, tires, food waste, and other garbage enter
the wetland depressions, channels, creeks and rivers. Some of this
debris is also transported downstream and outside of Auburn;
• It is contrary to the objectives of environmental protection and
preservation for clothing, hypodermic needles, human waste, plastic,
batteries, electronics, bicycles, shopping carts, tires, food waste, and
other garbage to enter wetlands, creeks, and rivers that provide
value to aquatic life, terrestrial life, flood detention, surface water
quality and ground water quality;
• The City of Auburn has invested many millions of dollars to protect
and preserve the environment, and has acquired dozens of
properties for this purpose. The City has spent millions of taxpayer
dollars to restore environmentally sensitive lands that were
previously altered;
• One single example of a City investment to protect and restore
environmentally sensitive lands is the Mill Creek 5K wetland
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March 25, 2021
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restoration and creek realignment project. The City spent more than
$7,000,000 to acquire sensitive lands, install a fish friendly culvert
under 15 Street NW, recreate a meandering fish friendly creek
present decades ago that was then altered for farmland, and plant
millions of new trees, shrubs and grasses for the benefit of fish and
water quality. These financial investments and mitigation efforts
have been heavily impacted and, in some areas, destroyed by
activity associated with homeless encampments;
• Throughout the City, vegetation has been removed, human waste
deposited, and used hypodermic needles discarded in areas that
otherwise prohibit private property owners from mowing, planting,
grading, hydroseeding, applying pesticide or herbicide, constructing
trails, building, or any other type of human activity that encroaches
into the environmentally sensitive feature or its buffer. Chapter 16.10
of the Auburn City Code states that environmentally sensitive critical
areas are naturally vegetated, undisturbed, enhanced or revegetated
areas that are to be protected from adverse impacts to their integrity
and value;
• Financial impacts:
• The City has received estimates from 3rd party contractors to clean
up the 43 homeless encampments referenced above. The estimates
for these clean-up efforts range in cost from $10,000 to $50,000 per
encampment;
• The total clean-up cost for these encampments ranges from
$430,000 to $2.25 million. This cost only covers the cost to haul out
debris—it does not cover the costs associated with site preparation,
installation of erosion control measures, and restoration of a site
once it is cleaned up. The City expects to incur these additional
costs as annual recurring costs as well as the cost of staff support to
complete such work;
• The City does not have the budget to cover these costs on an
annual basis, and believes that its historic approach of investing
public money in shelter services rather than environmental cleanup
is a better and more effective use of public funds;
• Limited effectiveness of infraction enforcement: Enforcement of the
ordinance as a civil infraction will not adequately address the problems
associated with homeless encampments and related activity on public
property because:
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March 25, 2021
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• by law, civil infractions carry only monetary penalties that provide
little to no deterrent to homeless individuals who have little or no
financial resources to pay;
• unpaid civil infraction penalties result in a money judgment against
the cited person that can affect their creditworthiness when later
applying for financial or housing resources;
• court's hearing and deciding civil infractions can only impose the
infraction's monetary penalty—they cannot order cited persons to
utilize needed community services designed to alleviate the
underlying causes of homeless behavior;
• civil infraction offenses cannot be referred to the City's community
court program for adjudication, so cited individuals attending
traditional court to address a cited infraction will not be connected to
the community court program facility or its adjacent ACRC facility that
offers individuals needed and available services and resources
aimed at reducing homelessness;
• Safety and health concerns: Civilian social workers will often accompany
police officers while contacting individuals experiencing homelessness and
who also may be camping on City property. Individuals camping under
these circumstances often utilize tents as temporary shelters and/or for the
storage of personal items. Contacts between individuals camping and
officers can be unpredictable, requiring officers to have specialized training
and equipment. In order to ensure the safety of unarmed, untrained, and
under equipped City staff such as the City's homeless navigator, who may
be working alongside law enforcement with homeless individuals, it is
important that officers have an unobstructed view into the tent to scan for
weapons or other dangerous items. It is not uncommon for individuals
experiencing homelessness to possess weapons as a form of protection.
Having an unobstructed view would also enable police or civilian workers to
see whether individuals inside are experiencing a medical emergency
requiring immediate assistance;
WHEREAS, having received and considered the above additional information
related to: 1) the homelessness problem in the City and its effects on City residents,
resources and environment; and 2)the enforcement tools needed by the City to effectively
address the problem and its City-wide effects, the Council finds it in the City's best
interests to further consider the issue of homelessness in the City and how the City can
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March 25, 2021
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effectively address the issue through its ordinance directed at prohibiting camping activity
on City property.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF AUBURN,
WASHINGTON, DO ORDAIN as follows:
Section 1. Amendment to City Code. Section 2.22.210 of the Auburn City
Code is amended to read as follows:
No person shall erect, maintain, use or occupy a tent or shelter in any City of
Auburn park unless there is an unobstructed view through such tent or shelter
from at least two sides. e - - - • - e- .e• --e - - - • - -
overnight camping, which is prohibited in parks pursuant to ACC 9.50.030.
Violation of this section is constitutes a Class 1 civil infraction punishable by a
$250 fine pursuant to Chapter 7. 80-R-C-W. - - -
9.50.030.
Section 2. Amendment to City Code. Section 2.22.220 of the Auburn City
Code is amended to read as follows:
A. Unless otherwise posted, parks shall open one-half hour before sunrise and
close one-half hour after sunset. No person shall enter or remain in a park when
it is closed. Any person entering or remaining in a closed park
is subject to arrest and prosecution for criminal trespass a Class 1 civil infraction
pursuant to ACC 9.96.900 and/or RCW 9A.52.
B. The director may extend open hours for sanctioned events, but only that
portion of a park being used for the event will be open beyond normal hours;
other areas of such a park shall remain closed.
C. This section shall not apply to:
1. Police officers or park employees while on duty.
2. Sidewalks that are within the right-of-way of a public street, when the street is
not within the boundaries of a park.
3. Persons entering or remaining in a closed park in violation of ACC 9.50.030.
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March 25, 2021
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Section 3. New Section. A new section ACC 2.22.240 is added to the Auburn
City Code to read as follows:
A. Enforcement authority in parks. In addition to any other enforcement authority,
when any police officer or City official has probable cause to believe that any
person within a park has committed a crime as defined by the RCW or by the
Auburn City Code, or has violated any ordinance, rule or regulation established by
this Park code or by the City's parks department, the officer or official may:
1. Order such person to immediately leave the park. Any person refusing to
comply with such an order or returning to the park on the same calendar day as
such an order is subject to prosecution for criminal trespass pursuant to RCW
9A.52 and/or ACC 9.96.900; and
2. Issue the person a written admonishment excluding them from City park
property for a period up to 1 year from the issue date. Persons receiving such an
admonishment who return to park property within the admonishment period are
subject to prosecution for criminal trespass pursuant to RCW 9A.52 and/or ACC
9.96.900.
B. Admonishment issuance and appeals.
1. Admonishments issued under this section:
a. are valid and effective whether or not the excluded person is charged, tried or
convicted of any crime or infraction;
b. are valid and effective even if the admonished person refuses a copy of the
admonishment, provided that the issuing city official reasonably notifies the
admonished person of the admonishment period, place(s) of exclusion and appeal
process under this section;
c. are valid and effective for the admonishment period unless and until shortened
or rescinded by an official ruling after appeal in this section;
d. may be based upon observations by city officials and/or police officers, or upon
civilian reports that an official or officer could reasonably rely on in determining
probable cause; and
e. shall include a statement of the appeal rights in this section and a form for
appealing the admonishment as provided by this section.
2. Persons receiving admonishments under this section may appeal the
admonishment in writing. Any such appeal must:
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March 25, 2021
Page 6 of 12
a. Be in writing, either on the form referenced in this section or in a writing including
at least the person's name, the involved property location and the approximate
admonishment date to enable processing of the appeal;
b. Be received by the City Clerk or postmarked within 14 calendar days of the
person's receiving the admonishment; and
c. Be under oath and include all facts that the excluded person believes supports
a shortening or rescinding of the admonishment.
3. The director of parks, arts, and recreation, or designee, shall review the appeal
and shall issue a ruling upholding, rescinding or shortening the admonishment
within 14 calendar days of receiving the appeal. The director or designee may
consider the admonishment and any other relevant and trustworthy submitted
written materials in deciding the appeal. The admonishment shall be upheld if
supported by a preponderance of evidence. The ruling may be transmitted to the
excluded person by mail, in person, electronically, or by any other method
specified by the person or reasonably likely under the circumstances to give notice.
4. The appeal process in this section cannot be used to appeal any criminal
penalties imposed by a court under this section or any other law.
C. Limitation. Trespass admonishments issued to persons violating ACC 9.50.030
on park property shall be processed pursuant to ACC 9.50.030(E).
Section 4. Amendment to City Code. Section 9.50.030 of the Auburn City
Code is amended to read as follows:
A. Camping Prohibited. It is unlawful for any person to camp, occupy camp
facilities or use camp paraphernalia on city property, except as set forth in
subsection C of this section.
B. Storage of Camping Items Prohibited. It is unlawful for any person to store
camp facilities and camp paraphernalia on city property, except as otherwise
provided by ordinance.
C. Exceptions. The prohibitions contained in subsection A of this section shall
not apply if:
1. The violation constitutes a trespass on park property under ACC 2.22.220; or
12. The person is engaged in activity prohibited by subsections A and B of this
section because they are experiencing homelessness, and there is no
overnight shelter available for persons experiencing homele&ne:,s on the date
that the prohibited activity occurs; or
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March 25, 2021
Page 7 of 12
23. The person is camping or using camp paraphernalia or camp facilities at a
Game Farm Park Campground site after paying the required fees; or
34. The person is camping or using camp paraphernalia or camp facilities as
permitted under this subsection:
a. The director of the parks, arts, and recreation department may permit persons
to camp, occupy camp facilities, use camp paraphernalia, or store personal
property in parks property as defined in Chapter 2.22 ACC and as listed in the
park inventory portion of the parks, recreation and open space plan, within the
city's comprehensive plan.
b. The director of the parks, arts, and recreation department may approve a
permit for camping on city park property if the director finds, based upon a permit
application and information otherwise obtained, that:
i. Adequate sanitary facilities are provided and accessible at or near the camp
site;
ii. Adequate trash receptacles and trash collection will be provided;
iii. The camping activity will not unreasonably disturb or interfere with the peace,
comfort and repose of private property owners;
iv. The camping activity is not reasonably likely to cause injury to persons or
property, to provoke disorderly conduct or to create a disturbance; and
v. The camping is in the public interest.
c. The director of the parks, arts, and recreation department is authorized to
promulgate rules and regulations regarding the implementation and enforcement
of this chapter.
d. Seven days is the maximum period of time a permit may authorize camping
on city property.
e. Any person denied a permit may appeal the denial to the hearing examiner in
the manner described in Chapter 2.46 ACC and ACC 15.07.130 with the director
of the parks, arts, and recreation department serving the role of the building or
fire official in that code.
4. The person is camping or trespassing on any City utility property identified in
ACC Title 13, which shall be regulated by that Title;
5. The person is camping or trespassing on Auburn Municipal Airport properties
or areas identified in ACC 18.04, which shall be regulated pursuant to ACC
9.96.900 and/or RCW 9A.52.
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March 25, 2021
Page 8 of 12
D. Definitions. For this section, the following shall apply:
1. "Available overnight shelter" means:
a. A public or private shelter located within the city of Auburn that offers
overnight shelter to persons experiencing homelessness and confirms to a city
employee that it has an available overnight space at no cost for that person; or
b. If no shelter described in subsection (D)(1)(a) of this section has available
space, a shelter located within King or Pierce County that offers overnight shelter
to persons experiencing homelessness and confirms to a city employee_
(i) that it has an available overnight space at no cost for that person; and
(ii) that it such s elter-is also-accessible to the person by public transportation or
vehicle for hire at no cost for that person. : - • - - - • - •: -= -
individual or family experiencing homelescnesc.
c. An overnight shelter is available if an individual is prevented from using an
otherwise available shelter space because of their past or present voluntary
actions such as unlawful drug use or possession, criminal act(s), unruly behavior
or willful violation of shelter rules or restrictions pertaining to such activity.
d. 2- An overnight shelter is unavailable if:
Via- An individual or family cannot use the shelter's available space because of
shelter-imposed restrictions on its use (other than any restrictions the shelter has
imposed pursuant to (D)(1)(c) of this section) a person's sex, familial or marital
(ii)b- A city employee, an individual or family attempts to secure a space at the
shelter for the day and is denied due to lack of available space. ;er
c. An individual's past or present voluntary actions such as intoxication, drug
use, or unruly behavior prevent the use of an otherwise available shelter space.
23. "City property" as used in this section means all improved and unimproved
real property owned or leased by the city of Auburn, and all city of Auburn
easements, including but not limited to all portions of city parks, as defined in
Chapter 2.22 ACC, city buildings, rights-of-way, city parking lots, and city
environmentally sensitive areas as defined in ACC 16.06.065. , airport property,
_ , _ •_ -. - ' . - ' - . City property shall not include:
a. religious organization property subject to RCW 35A.21.360;
b. city utilities or utility property identified in ACC Title 13; or
c. Airport property or areas identified in ACC 18.04.
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March 25, 2021
Page 9 of 12
34. "Camp" or "camping" means to pitch, create, use, or occupy camp facilities
for the purposes of habitation, living accommodation, or dwelling, as evidenced
by the storage of personal belongings in "camp facilities" or the use of"camp
paraphernalia."
45. "Camp facilities" include, but are not limited to, tents, tarps configured for
shelter, huts, and temporary shelters. "Camp facilities" does not include shelters
when used temporarily in a park for recreation or play, consistent with Chapter
2.22 ACC, during hours when the park is open to the public.
56. "Camp paraphernalia" includes, but is not limited to, tarpaulins, cots, beds,
sleeping bags, blankets, mattresses, hammocks, or non-city-designated cooking
facilities and similar equipment.
67. "Store" means to put aside or accumulate for use when needed, to put for
safekeeping, to place or leave in a location.
E. Penalties and enforcement. y When enforced, v
1. A violation of this subsection is a misdemeanor punishable by 90 days in jail
and/or a $1,000 fine. Class 1 civil infraction pursuant to Chapter 7.80 RCW.
2. When any police officer or City official has probable cause to believe that any
person has violated this section, the officer or official may:
a. Order such person to immediately leave the property where the violation is
occurring. Subject to (C)(1) of this section, any person refusing to comply with
such an order or returning to the property on the same calendar day as such an
order is subject to prosecution for criminal trespass pursuant to RCW 9A.52 and/or
ACC 9.96.900; and
b. Issue the person a written admonishment excluding them from the property
where the violation is occurring for a period up to 1 year from the issue date.
Subject to (C)(1) of this section, persons who return to the property within the
admonishment period are subject to prosecution for criminal trespass pursuant to
RCW 9A.52 and/or ACC 9.96.900.
3. Admonishments issued under this section:
a. are valid and effective whether or not the excluded person is charged, tried or
convicted of any crime or infraction;
b. are valid and effective even if the admonished person refuses a copy of the
admonishment, provided that the issuing city official reasonably notifies the
admonished person of the admonishment period, place(s) of exclusion and appeal
process under this section;
c. are valid and effective for the admonishment period unless and until shortened
or rescinded by an official ruling after appeal in this section;
Ordinance No. 6817
March 25, 2021
Page 10 of 12
d. may be based upon observations by city officials and/or police officers, or upon
civilian reports that an official or officer could reasonably rely on in determining
probable cause; and
e. shall include a statement of the appeal rights in this section and a form for
appealing the admonishment as provided by this section.
4. Persons receiving admonishments under this section may appeal the
admonishment. Any such appeal must:
a. Be in writing, either on the form referenced in this section or in a writing including
at least the person's name, the involved property location and the approximate
admonishment date to enable processing of the appeal;
b. Be received by the City Clerk or postmarked within 14 calendar days of the
person's receiving the admonishment; and
c. Be under oath and include all facts that the excluded person believes supports
a shortening or rescinding of the admonishment.
5. Admonishment appeals under this section involving City parks shall be
processed according to ACC 2.22.240. Otherwise, the Director of Community
Development or designee shall review the appeal and issue a ruling upholding,
rescinding or shortening the admonishment within 14 calendar days of receiving
the appeal. The Director or designee may consider the admonishment and any
other relevant and trustworthy submitted written materials in deciding the appeal.
The admonishment shall be upheld if supported by a preponderance of evidence.
The ruling may be transmitted to the excluded person by mail, in person,
electronically, or by any other method specified by the person or reasonably likely
under the circumstances to give notice.
6. The appeal process in this section cannot be used to appeal any criminal
penalties imposed by a court under this section or any other law.
Section 5. Implementation. The Mayor is authorized to implement those
administrative procedures necessary to carry out the directives of this legislation.
Section 6. Severability. The provisions of this ordinance are declared to be
separate and severable. The invalidity of any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision,
section, or portion of this ordinance, or the invalidity of the application of it to any person
or circumstance, will not affect the validity of the remainder of this ordinance, or the validity
of its application to other persons or circumstances.
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March 25, 2021
Page 11 of 12
Section 7. Effective date. This Ordinance will take effect and be in force five
days from and after its passage, approval, and publication as provided by law.
APR 1J2021
INTRODUCED:
PASSED: APR 1 9 2021
APPROVED: APR 1 9 2021
NANCY :AKUS, MAYOR
ATTEST: APPROVED AS TO FORM:
Shawn Campbell, MM , City Clerk endra Comeau, City Attorney
Published: YA 1,T16‘ 2�Z\
`\A -Mc ‘Sect-kile `rime c
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March 25, 2021
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