Could it be that that Joseph Caetano is the only one on City Council who gets it when it comes to addressing the panhandler issue? No one would even second his motion to direct city attorneys to write an ordinance–not unlike the one in seemingly more progressive St. Petersburg–that prohibits transactions in or along roads. Not just panhandlers, but newspaper hawkers and charity solicitors. Those with cardboard signs and those with firefighter boots.
It’s called public safety. It’s also called common sense. Even if we are in a recession. Even if we mandate loud safety vests. Even if the ACLU has an issue with it. As Mayor Pam Iorio noted, “The current situation is a distraction to motorists and unsafe for the panhandlers.”