Panhandling bylaw expected to pass tonight in Maple Ridge
Posted November 12, 2019 11:24 am.
Last Updated November 12, 2019 11:33 am.
MAPLE RIDGE (NEWS 1130) – Maple Ridge is aiming to crack down on aggressive panhandlers with a new bylaw, but an advocate says it will further marginalize an already vulnerable population.
City council in Maple Ridge appears to be ready to enact the Safer Streets Bylaw, which aims to keep panhandlers away from certain areas.
Councillor Ahmed Yousef insists the bylaw, which is expected to be adopted on Tuesday night, is aimed only at aggressive behavior.
“Behaviour that has eroded our residents’ sense of security over the years,” he says.
The language of the bylaw is mostly focused on solicitation, which would be banned within 10 metres of banks, ATMs, bus stops, and liquor stores.
The bylaw would also ban asking for money from somebody in a car, or after the sun goes down.
Local advocate Chris Bossley is concerned that police and bylaw officers are being left to interpret the bylaw themselves, and she says that could lead to Charter infringements.
“I can certainly see them targeting a certain population in Maple Ridge,” she says, and violations come with a fine of up to $100.
Bossley also notes council blasted through second and third readings without gathering public input in between.
