|
<br />_ _--.;- ___ _ _ _ __ ~_L____. _~~ ~ ~_
<br />
<br />Jeffry Spolan, 2250 Lorane Highway, had two questions on the reg u,J:a,tioi?s ':'; (1)-
<br />Whether it would be considered a violation if participants in a th,eatricaltype',
<br />activity comprising a large number of people spilled over into the area of I _
<br />another permitted activity; and (2) whether Police Department interference with: ..
<br />a permitted activity would be considered a violation. Les Swanson, City Attorney;s' ,.,
<br />office, answered that participants in any permitted activity in a specific area,
<br />such as the central fountain portion of the mall, who spread out and interfere
<br />with another activity given a permit for another section of the mall, would be in
<br />violation. In answer to Mr. Spolan's suggestion that it might be better not to
<br />schedule two activities at the same time, Assistant Manager answered that the
<br />permit procedure resulted from this type situation which occurs frequently.
<br />Problems of confli cts arose and the permi t system was found to be the best way
<br />to guarantee reasonable use and scheduling as well as control of unacceptable
<br />conduct. Mrs. Beal suggested applicants who expected large participation should
<br />request permit for more than one section of the mall to avoid such occurrences.
<br />
<br />With regard to inclusion of the Police Department when determining interference
<br />with permitted activities, Mr. Swanson said if-pe.1ic are not acting under Eheir
<br />lawful authority making an arrest or inquiry they are entitled to make, that is,
<br />if they are acting as any other citizen and disrupting an activity taking place,
<br />then they are subject to the law the same as anyone else.
<br />
<br />Mr. Teague posed the question as to whether the regulations go far enough in re-
<br />stricting activities in the mall area. He said he has had complaints that ladies
<br />cannot go to the mall because of the harrassment, panhandling, offensi ve conduct, .-
<br />etc., especially at night. He said as long as revisions are being made, they
<br />should enable something to be done in this respect. Other incidents not in good
<br />, taste beyond those covered by general City ordinances, he said, are taking place
<br />and people should not be subjected to them. Chief Allen commented that his office
<br />receives the same sort of complaints about which Mr. Teague is concerned. The
<br />Chief said the problems are that some of the incidents found objectionable to some
<br />people are not violations of existing laws, and it would be difficult to obtain
<br />legislation to prohibit those activities. A majority of the violations are mis-
<br />demeanors which means an officer must have observed the incident before he can make
<br />an arrest. Otherwise, the victim of the in~ident - panhandling, harrassment,
<br />disorderly conduct - has the right to file a complaint, and the police are find-
<br />ing that a large number of people offended are reluctant to assist in the prosecu-
<br />tion. They expect the officers to not only make the arrest, but to carry through
<br />on the prosecution. Another problem faced by the Department is the number of
<br />man-hours required in attempting to keep the mall a reasonably acceptable area for
<br />people to enjoy. He cited statistics on number of arrests and the number of
<br />officers devoted to the three-square-block mall area. He said he is not convinced
<br />,more officers assigned to that area will solve the problem. I'
<br />
<br />Councilman Teague wanted to know what needs to be done to prvent these incidents,
<br />what changes could be made in the regulations to enable better enforcement. .-.
<br />Assistant Manager suggested further revision of the ordinance language, working ,"
<br />with the City Attorney to develop legislation which would inhibit "an inordinate
<br />display of affection in public," and it was understood this wou:l:d be done.
<br />
<br />Councilman McDonald referred to the part of the ordinance setting forth purposes
<br />of the mall and said he didn't understand why the Valley River Center or 29th and
<br />Willamette Plaza do not experience the same problems as the downtown mall.
<br />
<br />Councilman Williams felt the words"... climb or enter upon..." would be clearer
<br />than just "...enter upon..." a covering structure in Section 4.872. Orval Etter, .
<br />I
<br />City Attorney's office, called attention to the entire section which refers to
<br />shrubs, flowered areas, or a covering structure which calls for the present word-
<br />ing. He said, too, it is not only a case of climbing upon, but persons coming
<br />down onto the structures from above or from the same level. It was understood
<br />the language would be reviewed with idea of clarification in this regard.
<br />
<br />'Mr. Williams suggested that in Section 4.876 the hours be stated as "...after mid-
<br />,night..." rather than "...before 6:00 a.m...." to clarify the times when permit
<br />'activities are not permitted. He asked too whether regulations governing use of
<br />bi~cycles on the mall are covere.d by other ordinances since there is no mention of .
<br />them in these regulations. Assistant Manager said, the language of this section
<br />!~OU,ld also be reviewed, and that the ge1)eral bicycle ordinance covers bicycle " ;:
<br />I i'egulations ~
<br />
<br />Councilman Hershner said he never envIsioned'tfu3 mall as a park in the sense one-
<br />normally thinks of a park; i.e., having grassy areas to sit or lie on. He. asked
<br />whether some of the probieniS'about which people are concerned would be allevi~.ted
<br />.. .\ . " . .' ' . "', '. .
<br />if walking, sitting; or lying on the grassy areas were prohibited.!fnd.whether
<br />from a legal standpoint;: "keep ofr,', t.ne grass" signs could be installed in the
<br />..Qowntown mall. " ' ,k v
<br />
<br />,.2 7 0 9/11/72 - 8
<br />
|