Arlington Heights board rejects ban on sleeping in public places
After months of debate, a split Arlington Heights village board has turned down a proposal to ban sleeping or camping on public property.
“Anything that targets and creates consequences for someone based on housing status has been and will be perceived as criminalization of homelessness,” said Trustee Bill Manganaro, one of five board members who opposed the new rules Wednesday night. “Arlington Heights is moving into a leadership position in terms of visibility, certainly in the Northwest suburbs and throughout Chicagoland, and the Bears are making it more national with every time they talk about moving here. What we do here about this issue will survive any of our terms on this board.”
A municipal ban on sleeping or camping on public property at any time or during the overnight hours were among the options presented by the village’s attorneys, who researched possible regulations prompted by complaints of residents of a downtown high-rise building over the summer.
A sidewalk bench in front of the building at Northwest Highway and Vail Avenue became a popular gathering spot for a group of about five people — some housed, some not — and led to complaints of noise, littering, drinking and public urination. While officials say those issues have been resolved, the bench is still claimed by a woman who stores a number of belongings there.
Mayor Jim Tinaglia supported possible limits on public camping, but said no one at village hall “wants to use handcuffs and jail sentences in criminalizing someone who is already marginalized.”
The goal of such an ordinance, instead, would have been to provide safety and well-being, Tinaglia argued.
“How do we solve the problem when so far there’s been no solution? And how long do we close our eyes and pretend that person’s not there. I don’t want to put her in jail. I don’t want to give her a citation,” Tinaglia said. “I want to help them. I want to help them get to where they belong. And I want to make sure that they stop pretending that’s their home, because it’s not their home.”
The Arlington Heights Park District — in addition to municipalities like Highland Park, Northbrook, Peoria and East Peoria — have rules on their books prohibiting camping on public property any time.
Another option Arlington Heights considered is restricting public camping for an extended period, such as 48 hours, though Village Attorney Greg Smith said that would have been difficult to enforce.
Trustees also could have extended rules enacted in 2023 that allows the village to remove private property left in public parking garages. Officials can tag items with seven days’ notice, then give the owner 30 days to retrieve the items before disposal.
But most trustees questioned whether those actions would solve problems, noting police can already cite individuals for littering, drinking and public urination. They also raised concerns that homeless people would effectively be targeted in any ordinance.
Though no formal or informal vote was taken during a committee-of-the-whole meeting Wednesday, trustees Manganaro, Robin LaBedz, Wendy Dunnington, Carina Santa Maria and Greg Zyck spoke out against implementing new measures.
“In a vacuum by itself, I understand what trying to have an ordinance like this does. But what it always comes down to me is the human part of this,” Zyck said. “If it went so far as having an ordinance, I don’t know what the outcome is of any kind of ticket or fine. Does it motivate somebody to not camp out there anymore? I don’t know if it does.”
David Weiner, a member of the condo board who brought the matter to the village board’s attention in June, said the area around his building has since improved and is now “peaceful.” He agreed an ordinance was not the right solution, but said issues of homelessness are not going away.
Village officials in August formed a regional work group with other municipal officials, and plan to broaden its scope to include not-for-profit leaders who work with homeless individuals.