MORGANTOWN, W.Va. The Monongalia County Commission will hold a public meeting regarding the recent county-wide effort to control panhandling along roadways.
Monongalia County Commission President Tom Bloom used a template from a Virginia city and added input from officials from Star City. Granville and Morgantown to develop a two-page draft ordinance. Once the document completed legal review, the proposed ordinance grew to eight pages, according to Bloom.
“It’s to keep pedestrians safe, stop vehicular hazards, and keep the flow of traffic moving,” Bloom said. “And it’s called an ordinance Regulating Pedestrian and Vehicle Safety.”
Reports of the problem began at local retail areas when municipalities realized there was no consistent law or procedure, so people could quickly move from Star City to Granville if encountered by the police. Concern grew when more complaints came from the public that included “close calls” in traffic that could result in injury or damage.
“This is an ordinance that cities and officials came together and said we’re having a problem with individuals in the median and in the roadway—what can we do?” Bloom explained.
Language from the ordinance says, “The Monongalia County Commission finds that the interaction or exchanging of items between pedestrians and occupants of vehicles hinders the flow of traffic on roadways and increases the risk of single-vehicle, vehicle-on-vehicle, or vehicle-on-pedestrian accidents, which the commission finds to be a hazard to public safety.”
Officials from Star City and Granville have expressed support for the plan. In Morgantown, Seventh Ward Councilor Brian Butcher said he is concerned the ordinance is too broad in terms of handing things to and from car windows but does believe the measure would protect people from being injured in roadways.
“It has nothing to do with the content or the text of any sort of First Amendment area; it’s dealing with the safety issue,” Bloom said. “We’re talking about the roadway, the flow of traffic, and the hazards that are caused when someone is in the middle of the road.”
The commission now has the document available for review by the public, and soon it will be on the county website. Bloom encourages residents to review the proposal and provide input.
“We will put it on our website so people can see it, read it, and download it if they need it,” Bloom said. “I’m really pleased with what we’ve come up with.”
The public meeting is planned for Wednesday, August 16, at 10 a.m. in the County Commission Chamber at the Monongalia County Courthouse.
“If the public has some input, we’ll look at the ordinance and talk about what the ordinance is addressing and if people have concerns,” Bloom said.