DOVER, DE- A proposed panhandling ordinance is back on the agenda tonight in Dover, with city leaders debating a plan that would penalize not only people standing on medians but also drivers who stop to engage with them. Supporters say it's about safety, while critics push back.
The Dover City Council Committee of the Whole is reviewing the measure Tuesday night, which could decide whether the ordinance advances out of committee for a first reading.
The proposal, Ordinance 2025-21, would restrict pedestrians from approaching moving vehicles except when legally crossing and prohibit people from standing on medians in Dover for longer than two light cycles. Drivers who stop or slow in traffic to engage with pedestrians in violation of these rules would also face penalties. These regulations would apply to the first 100 feet of intersections within the city.
Councilman David Anderson, who proposed the ordinance, said the measure is needed to improve safety for both pedestrians and drivers.
"This is essential to the safety of people, particularly people, some of whom are most in need of somebody looking out for them."
He added that slight changes were made to clarify the language since it was first discussed.
"Some things are explicit, like making sure sidewalks and private property are explicitly excluded. For instance, making sure that, before it, the officer had discretion to give a warning. Now, it explicitly mandates that the first time it's a written warning. Those are two big changes."
However, this ordinance has sparked significant debate in Dover. Last week, dozens of neighbors gathered outside City Hall to rally against it, chanting into a megaphone, "Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Punishing the poor has got to go!"
Critics, including Branden Fletcher with the H.O.M.E.S. Campaign, argue the real danger isn't people on the median — it's the crisis that put them there.
"To me, the safety issue is people who are sleeping on the street, people not being able to afford housing. People not being connected to resources and services."
Anderson said under the ordinance, anyone standing on a median for longer than allowed would be fined.
"The first time, it's a written warning. The second time is $15. The third time is 50."
Those fines would apply not only to people on the median, but also to drivers who stop in traffic to give money.
Shayanne Miller of H.O.M.E.S. Campaign, a vocal critic of the ordinance, said fining the city's most vulnerable — and even those who try to help them — goes too far.
"We're essentially being told that this legislation, if it were to pass, would actually also punish people who want to give to the homeless. They can charge you. They can actually fine you up to $50. And that's really concerning because you're even saying that for people who do want to help, you're going to tell them that they can't help."
Anderson said the proposal isn’t meant to stop people from helping, only to prevent them from doing so while standing in the middle of the road or on medians, which he says are unsafe for pedestrians and drivers.
"You're going to stop people from asking for money and stop people from giving? No, not at all. People are free to do both. Please don't do it while in the middle of the road."
Fletcher argued that punishing people already living on the streets won’t solve the problem and that the city should instead connect them to resources and address the root causes of homelessness.
"People are being pushed out of their homes every day. And what we're seeing is the worst of this crisis — people living on the street. Moving towards fines and fees and criminalizing people who are experiencing homelessness is an ineffective strategy. It's a waste of taxpayer dollars."
Miller added that homelessness in Dover results from systemic issues like the housing crisis and rising costs, and that fines only make matters worse.
"The fact that we're actually saying that we're going to punish people for being homeless in a city where, for you to survive, you have to make at least $29 an hour to be able to afford a two-bedroom apartment here in Dover. It's just too much. We're saying it has to go. This bill has to end."
Fletcher said he hopes tonight's committee discussion does not result in the ordinance being released.
"We're hoping that Councilman Anderson pulls the ordinance off of the agenda, and that it's dead and no longer comes back."
Anderson, however, said he is optimistic the ordinance will move forward.
"I'm hoping that tonight it will get on the floor for the first reading because I believe it's ready."
If released from committee, the ordinance would be scheduled for a first reading, likely in early December.