KALAMAZOO, MI -- New signs posted on the Kalamazoo Mall and seen in city parks warn that extended use of blankets and bedding will not be tolerated, echoing a controversial proposal of the past that went cold.
While some residents are in favor of rules for health and safety reasons, others are concerned about where the rule came from -- and who it targets.
It includes the same language as a policy that the Kalamazoo City Commission chose not to adopt in 2018, after a community outcry from dozens of people.
“Once again, the city administration is acting in direct opposition to the clearly and unambiguously expressed will of Kalamazoo citizens and the City Commission,” resident Jeff Messer said.
Homeless people are often seen in spaces along downtown Kalamazoo on any given day. Hangouts include some of the city’s prime areas, like Arcadia Festival Place, which has one of the new signs.
The posted rule targets homeless people, who are often seen sleeping or sitting with blankets in public spaces, Messer said.
Messer wants the City Commission to step in and remove the rules, and said only rules in the city code should be posted.
At the meeting on Aug. 20, 2018, minutes show 45 people spoke against a proposal that included the following text:
“Any activity in City Parks where bedding, sleeping bags, personal belongings or other materials, are established, or maintained for the purpose of maintaining a place to dwell or sleep for a period longer than 2 total hours within a 12 hour period, whether or not such place incorporates the use of any tent, lean-to, shack, or any other structure, or any vehicle or part thereof.”
Besides some minor rewording, the rule on the new sign is nearly identical. Messer said he believes the controversy helped kick off ongoing Bronson Park demonstrations that followed, attracting outside news coverage to the city.
Two citizens spoke in support of the proposed changes at the 2018 meeting.
None of the commissioners on the 2018 board made a motion, so the recommended item was not approved.
Back to 2023, the current city code of ordinances does not include any mention of bedding, though it does say camping is prohibited and includes some of the other rules shown on the sign. Those are misdemeanors.
The city manager’s office said the rules apply to all city parks – including the Arcadia Festival Site and the downtown north mall.
“The rules were developed by the City Attorney’s Office and have been in place for several years,” said city Communications Manager Mike Smith. He did not immediately have an answer about for follow-up questions but said he would look into them for a response.
Violations are a criminal misdemeanor and subject to prosecution, including fines, he said. The city did not provide further clarification on the penalty for using bedding.
Deputy City Manager Jeff Chamberlain said the North Kalamazoo Mall is a public green space, operated and maintained by the city parks department. That’s why it falls under the city’s park rules ordinance, he said.
“New park rules signs have been installed on the North Mall to clarify to the public that park rules apply to this green space,” Chamberlain said, and the signs on the North Mall are consistent with park rules signs in other city of Kalamazoo parks.
Residents weigh in
Some residents say the move unfairly targets homeless people, while others argue the bedding ban is necessary for safety reasons.
“They’re slowly pushing the homeless people out of town,” said John L., who said he and others often sleep outside. He declined to give his last name. “We don’t have a lot of places to go and relax and chill without being bothered.”
Ryan Robinson, who is in a wheelchair and has no legs following a 2021 injury, was at Arcadia Tuesday morning.
“I’m out here every single night,” he said.
He did not sleep overnight, Robinson said, and one reason is due to fear of having his things stolen.
“I’m so tired tired right now,” Robinson said.
Judy Lowery, an advocate for houseless individuals in Kalamazoo said the posted rules don’t match the ones posted on the city website.
“They’ve changed the rules without public input, specifically targeting people who are houseless!” she said in a message to MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette. “This lack of transparency and closed-door decisions with our city leadership seems to keep growing, just like our lack of affordable housing and homeless numbers keep growing.”
“It is confounding how our leaders can sleep at night, when they are destroying what little belongings people own and are utilizing our police forces to harass and displace people who are houseless,” Lowery said.
College student Jasmine Hollman, 28, said she agrees with the posted rule that limits the use of bedding. She was sitting on a park bench at Arcadia Festival Place Thursday morning, June 8, where three people were sleeping on the ground and stage nearby.
“I just don’t want them to over-enforce it with high fines and penalties,” she said. “Certain people can’t afford that. But I do want them to enforce that rule.”
One resident, who said she’s new to the city and lives in a condominium on the Kalamazoo Mall, said there is a potential safety issue because of people spending time on the mall, as well as littering and public urination.
She declined to give her name, but said she has attended meetings with Southwest Michigan First where efforts to revitalize downtown have been discussed. They discussed ideas to increase bathroom access, for example, she said.
Tony Oliver, 43, was walking the North Kalamazoo Mall on Wednesday, June 7. He said he doesn’t see a problem with people using a blanket or lying in areas along the mall for hours, as long as they aren’t doing anything more to bother anyone.
“Just laying here, just sleeping, I don’t see no problem with it,” Oliver said.
The bedding rule surfaced as the city is working to address crime using new techniques, including establishing a substation on the North Kalamazoo Mall. The City Commission is also considering a proposal to create a public-private partnership to expand police surveillance capabilities.
The issue is not unique to Kalamazoo.
Across the country, in Portland, Oregon, the Portland City Council voted 3 to 1 on Wednesday to ban people from camping on public land during daytime hours within the city and to prohibit camping at all times near schools and other specific locations.
Editor’s note: The signs on the Kalamazoo Mall were installed last week. City of Kalamazoo Communications Manager Mike Smith said signs with the bedding rule were installed in various city of Kalamazoo parks in August of 2020.
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