Port Orange, FL - The Port Orange City Council is considering the creation of a panhandling ordinance, similar to the ordinance enacted by the city of Daytona Beach in February 2019. During their meeting earlier this week, Councilman Chase Tramont said they instructed the city attorney to review procedures.
Tramont said when Daytona Beach enacted their ordinance, a spillover was seen in Port Orange. " We're looking for any measure that we can to address it. Now, it's not reached the big problem that Daytona had but when you all of a sudden see things that you'd never seen in Port Orange, then it becomes a bigger problem."
According to the agenda item, Council has recently been approached by members of the community expressing concerns over the increase in panhandling. Tramont said, "Our job in the city of Port Orange is to protect and preserve the specific quality of life that we have and also, protect the environment for our businesses to thrive and not have to worry about their customers being harassed."
Council wants to find out the legal ramifications of a panhandling ordinance. Tramont said they want to get it right. "We're looking at some other options and seeing what we have at our disposal to use but we are moving forward with exploring enacting a type of ordinance that the city of Daytona and St. Augustine has done and has done successfully."
Also on the agenda was the first reading of an ordinance pertaining to the feral cats/community cat program and outdoor feeding. The City Council approved it on first reading.
