Around a dozen residents shared concerns with the ordinance Wednesday evening before council’s 4–3 vote against repeal.
The fate of Morgantown’s infamous “camping ban” rests in the hands of voters following a 4–3 City Council vote on Wednesday night. Council members Bill Kawecki, Louise Michael, Jennifer Selin, and Dave Harshbarger rejected a repeal of the code, keeping it in suspension until voters have their say in the April 29, 2025, municipal election.
Originally proposed by Third Ward Council Member Michael in July, the Camping on Public Property ordinance passed on a 4–3 vote in September during a six-hour council meeting with a packed public session. The policy prohibits camping and storing personal belongings on public property in the interest of “public health, safety and general welfare.”
Penalties range from a written warning on first offense to up to 30 days of imprisonment upon recurrent violations. However, no citations or penalties can be issued without a refused offer of alternative housing.
Met with mixed reactions from the public, the ordinance was quickly petitioned by mutual aid organization Morgantown Coalition for Housing Action (MoCHA). Totaling over 3,000 signatures, the group’s petition was deemed more than sufficient to prompt last night’s vote to repeal the ordinance or send it to referendum.
A bustling City Hall nearly full when the meeting started just after 7 p.m. Following a Small Business Saturday proclamation and recognition of winners of the city’s coloring contest, the energy of the room turned grim as 10 community members took to the podium to voice their concerns with the ordinance.
Many speakers stressed the need for resources like affordable housing and support for addiction and mental health and also questioned the ordinance’s financial practicality.
Community member Lesley Nash said policies like the camping ban “make us smaller, and meaner, and more alone. It puts us in a situation where, when we, God forbid, fall through our own safety nets, there is nothing left to catch us.”
During discussion, Fifth Ward Council Member Danielle Trumble spoke in opposition to the ordinance, saying, “Homelessness is a housing problem. It’s not a substance abuse problem, it’s not a mental health problem, it’s not a poverty problem. Those things exacerbate and are factors that definitely play into that, but at the end of the day, we don’t have places for people to go.”
Fourth Ward representative and Deputy Mayor Selin said both perspectives of the issue have “way more points of agreement than disagreement” and highlighted needs for community resources in addition to the ordinance. She explained the code’s purpose to create “a clean, appropriate place for people to recreate and purchase things, to protect our small business owners … and not to say that we would not have space in our world for people who are less fortunate … but that we set some sort of appropriate limits.”
With last night’s vote, the ordinance remains in limbo until voters decide in April. Attention now shifts to the upcoming election.
MoCHA representative Sarah Hutson detailed the organization’s next steps to highlight council member positions on next year’s ballot. She emphasized the community action required to collect petition signatures and described last night’s council deliberation as a demonstration of the ways Morgantown voters are capable of inspiring change.
“We will be going door to door, talking to folks about why the camping ban is a bad idea and about the candidates we will be supporting who will not pass terrible ordinances like this one and will work on actual solutions that will help get people housed.”
Watch Wednesday’s council meeting, and register to vote before the upcoming election.
This story has been edited to correct the day of the council meeting from Tuesday to Wednesday.
READ MORE ARTICLES FROM MORGANTOWN LOWDOWN
Leave a Reply