DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The Daytona Beach City Commission on Wednesday evening unanimously agreed to hire a constitutional attorney to draft an ordinance restricting panhandling in some parts of the city.
Commissioners will pay Michael Kahn $30,000 to write an ordinance that prohibits panhandling within 20 feet of the entrances and exits of businesses, banks and some government properties.
The city of Saint Augustine in April hired Kahn to write such an ordinance, and officials there said it has proven effective.
"It's the balance there to preserve the constitutional rights of the solicitors while also preserving the constitutional rights of the many other interested parties," Kahn said.
Kahn said he plans to present the first reading of the ordinance to the City Commission by late August.
Daytona Beach police Chief Craig Capri said that in the past year, at least six panhandlers have been struck by vehicles, and four of them died.
"We've had some issues here in the city with aggressive panhandlers (who) are going up to people in traffic and banging on their windows and jumping in their cars, threatening people for money," Capri said. "We had a gentleman about two weeks ago (who) was out in the street in his wheelchair. He was hit, and he's still in ICU in critical condition."
In recent months, people working at a Krispy Kreme store hired armed security guards to prevent customers from being harassed, and those at a Wawa arranged to have an empty police car parked outside the convenience store.
Cox Media Group
