You may have noticed the increasing solicitors on city streets in Framingham, and heard about the struggle to figure the best legal recourse. I believe it requires a holistic approach from our community, including enforcement, education, access to services and for people to stop giving them money. There is no one solution, but it does require action and I’m glad the City Council was able to take some.
In July the Rules and Ordinances Committee brought to the City Council an ordinance to regulate Aggressive Solicitation. You can see the draft here.
Our outgoing City Solicitor had concerns about the ordinance, and our current in-house legal council, (who started in August) Attorney Kate Fallon, wrote, “As stated, it is my opinion the proposed ordinance would not survive constitutional challenge, as it is a content-based restriction on speech in public fora likely to be deemed unconstitutional as in violation of the First Amendment.” You can read her full letter here.
Based on her review of other municipalities and in coordination with the Police Chief, she proposed an Ordinance to Create Median Safety and Pedestrian Regulation in Public Roadway, which the Council passed unanimously on September 20.
The Median Safety regulation is an effort to address our public safety concerns, while not banning the public right to use medians, sidewalks, or safety islands. It applies to all pedestrians, and is limited in scope to specific roadways within the City. Attorney Fallon also writes, “Please keep in mind that the proposed Median Safety ordinance may also be subject to challenge.”
I have met with Attorney Fallon and appreciate her quick start and collaboration with other City departments. She is excited about the opportunity to build an in-house legal department and I look forward to seeing how it materializes.
Our police department, tasked with enforcement of this ordinance, practices community policing and knows many of the regular solicitors at our intersections. They are also well connected to local mental health providers and social service resources and active participants in The Metrowest Care Connection. This Hub model is designed to better connect people to the services and supports they need to thrive in their community. They have met regularly since November 2021 “to assess gaps in services, identify underserved populations and individuals in greatest need, establish systems to support people across organizations, and coordinate care” and are another new asset to our Metrowest community.
The police will educate and then fine those standing in traffic on the roadways and creating a public safety hazard. We can support them by not giving any money to solicitors we see.
Please reach out if you’d like to discuss this more.