Spokane council considers anti-panhandling rules

It could soon be illegal to ask for money throughout much of downtown Spokane – at least on a sidewalk.

The Spokane City Council is considering a series of ordinances that would create significant barriers to panhandling.

Officials say they are responding to business and downtown leaders who have complained that customers are being harassed and that panhandlers sometimes block pedestrians and impede vehicle traffic.

Proposed restrictions include a ban on panhandling within 15 feet of any business entrance, ATMs, fuel pump or pay phone. Other new rules would require panhandlers to get a peddler’s license if they wanted to continue asking for money at some intersections. One proposed law would outlaw sitting or lying on most downtown sidewalks from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.

At a hearing Monday night, several officials representing downtown groups or businesses said some panhandlers are aggressive and have spit at or been violent with pedestrians. Keith Erhardt, facility manager of Washington Trust Bank, said groups of panhandlers often sit on the sidewalk alongside the downtown bank, bothering customers and blocking their way.

Chris Powell, security director of the Davenport Hotel and Tower, said hotel visitors have complained about panhandlers approaching them in threatening ways. “It may only be a perception, but if it’s a perception, then we need to deal with it,” he said.

But others noted that the city already bans aggressive panhandling. Going further could inhibit free speech, they argued. Some suggested that panhandling in Spokane has been exaggerated.

“You cannot address social problems by passing punitive ordinances that put people in jail,” said Christine Carlile, a Spokane County public defender who said she was speaking as a Spokane resident. “You don’t want to pass laws that essentially criminalize poverty.”