On July 9, city leaders in Duluth proposed ten ordinance changes that officials say will solve frequently reported non-violent offenses. A meeting held on Wednesday July 24th gave community members a chance to voice their concerns regarding the proposed ordinances.

The ordinances cover behaviors like burning, property damage, graffiti, solid waste compliance, and camping on public property. These non-violent offenses, which usually results in a fine could be charged as misdemeanor offenses instead. Community members have voiced concerns about the ordinance changes through emails and attending City Council meetings since the initial proposal.

The community meeting was held at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church Wednesday evening. Local organizations like Stepping on Up, CHUM, and the NAACP were represented at the meeting.

“We’d urge people to contact Duluth City Council, express their concerns, but also recognize that this council has done some really good things, significant things to address homelessness. But until the root issue of lack of shelter and housing beds is addressed, what this camping ban is presenting is false hope,” said Stepping On Up Project Organizer Joel Kilgour. “We’re not going to end those encampments. Even if this ordinance is passed, a year from now, we’re going to be dealing with the same thing until we have the shelter and housing beds.”

Stepping On Up Project Organizer Joel Kilgour also spoke on the lack of communication from city officials before the ordinance changes were proposed.

“We were quite caught off guard by these proposals,” said Kilgour. “We have had a really long history of collaboration between our nonprofit sector and the public sector. We used to have some conversations about things before they were brought public. And that didn’t happen. Which is something the mayor has acknowledged and said he wished he had done differently.”

Another attendee at the meeting was Susana Pelayo-Woodward, who spoke on behalf of NAACP at the city council meeting. Pelayo-Woodward voiced concern regarding distrust in community and city leaders.

“We need to bring the communities together for consultation. This issue is not going to go away. It’s just going to get worse,” said Pelayo-Woodward. “And our lack of distrust in our neighborhoods and community and city leaders and police department is not going to improve.”

The ten ordinances were first read by Duluth City Council at their Monday, July 15 meeting. The package will be read by the council a requisite second time at its meeting on July 29 and a vote will follow. The ordinances would go into effect 30 days following adoption.