NEW ORLEANS — An ordinance surrounding the unhoused community was a hot topic at Monday's Quality of Life Committee Meeting.
New Orleans City Councilmembers Green, King and Thomas proposed the ordinance which would have imposed fines on people who are feeding those living on the streets.
Eugene Green stressed it would only apply to people dropping off unsealed or unattended food.
“There is nothing that the City of New Orleans is doing to make it illegal to feed those who are in need of food," Green said, "There is nothing in the ordinance which prevents you from having food like this in covered containers and bring it to those who are unhoused.”
After hours of debate, Green cut public comment short when he moved to defer the ordinance until a later date.
King said the ordinance was an effort to address the increasing rodent and sanitation issues being seen at homeless encampments.
“Please don’t just take your leftover picnic food or your leftovers you no longer want at the foot of an encampment. That doesn’t help anyone. All that does is exacerbate the problems at these encampments," King said.
King said that people need to consider businesses and homeowners that work and live near the encampments.
Monday morning, Councilmembers Moreno and Morrell expressed they wouldn't support the ordinance on social media.
Meanwhile, Councilwoman Lesli Harris said she couldn't support the penalties.
“I do think this may be better as an educational campaign rather than imposing fines," Harris said.
UNITY of Greater New Orleans said there's been a 15 percent increase in people experiencing homelessness in our area between 2022 and 2023.
“Which is the largest spike in homelessness that we’ve seen since Hurricane Katrina," Martha Kegel, Executive Director of UNITY said.
Unhoused advocates and the New Orleans Health Dept. expressed health and safety concerns surrounding the encampments at the meeting.
But Director of Programs of Travelers Aid Society of Greater New Orleans, Angela Owczarek, said patrolling people dropping off food was not a top five priority for folks like herself who work closely with the unhoused community.
“People are concerned about health and safety, but I will say as someone who shares that concern, I do not think food hygiene, especially approaching it in a punitive way is the place to start," Owczarek said.
UNITY and Travelers Aid said that the City creating more affordable housing was their top priority.
The advocates and city council also urged community members to dispose of household goods and furniture properly, not at encampments.