ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥

Last month the City Council approved amending a 2000 ordinance that originally barred people from soliciting in traffic medians. It was deemed unenforceable because of federal court rulings that said soliciting is protected by the First Amendment, City Attorney Mike Rankin has said.

The change comes after ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ voters approved Proposition 312. It allows property owners to get a property tax rebate if local jurisdictions fail to enforce its own laws on things like loitering, illegal camping or drug use.

Police have spent the last 30 days warning people about the updated ordinance and the upcoming enforcement.

“Starting this month, our officers will begin enforcing the new median safety ordinance,â€� the police department said in a Facebook post. “With the 30-day education phase concluded, enforcement efforts are now underway — an essential measure to enhance public safety and reduce traffic-related incidents on ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s streets.â€�

The department said median enforcement would cover the entire city.

It said patrol officers would specifically focus on:

• Reducing jaywalking
• Curbing median violations

• Preventing pedestrian-involved crashes

Violators of the ordinance could receive a misdemeanor citation.

Under the ordinance, pedestrians are not to stand or remain on traffic medians where the posted speed limit is 30 mph or above.

TPD defines a traffic median as any area separating traffic lanes, paved, unpaved, marked or unmarked.

The only exception is someone briefly stopping at the median while crossing the street in a signalized crosswalk because there was not enough time to do so safely.

At the same meeting last month, the council failed to pass two related measures related to camping in city washes and parks.