AMHERST — Amherst officials are considering enhancing the town’s bylaw prohibiting open containers on public ways to encompass other issues affecting the quality of life for residents, in this case focusing on public urination and public defecation.
Drawing on model ordinances in Easthampton and Lowell, the Town Services and Outreach Committee recently gave the go-ahead for an amended bylaw, which allows for up to $300 fines, to possibly be brought to the Town Council for a vote by the end of 2025.
The bylaw states, “It shall be unlawful for any person to urinate or defecate in, or in
view of, a public place other than one set aside and designated for that particular purpose.”
The bylaw, though, exempts the enforcement provisions for those with “verified medical conditions.”
Police Chief Gabe Ting told the committee of the Town Council that having the measure on the books would be helpful.
“It provides an additional option for our officers to be able to utilize a noncriminal action instead of an arrest,” Ting said.
Ting said he had conversations with Easthampton Police Chief Chad Alexander about how that city’s bylaw was developed and has been utilized, and also spoke to University of Massachusetts officials about the possibility of having the revised bylaw.
The impetus for the bylaw, first proposed by At Large Councilor Mandi Jo Hanneke in February, includes problems at the Boltwood parking garage and at Sweetser Park, and the lack of a Portland Loo at Kendrick Park, and no other public restrooms available overnight.
This has led to the Department of Public Works regularly finding human feces at Sweetser Park, usually in bushes at the site off Main Street across from the police station, and at the parking garage.
“The issue down in the parking garage was a major issue, where there was consistency, on a daily basis, that urination and feces were discovered in there, to the point the DPW was getting really fed up,” Ting said.
The bylaw is about having an additional tool to utilize where an arrest or a warning may not be appropriate, Ting said. He added that officers have discretion in being sympathetic and empathetic to unhoused people, understanding that they can’t be issued fines.
“We are not looking to target any particular group of people,” Ting said.
Amherst faces a unique challenge due to the quality of life issues because of the large college-age population, with people attending parties or heading to bars and then wandering home on foot and having no place to relieve themselves.
Sometimes an arrest is made because there is no option for issuing a fine, Ting said.
District 3 Councilor George Ryan, who supported the measure, said this brings up a broader issue of lack of public restrooms in downtown that councilors may need to address, and see if there is a way to ensure more options.
The measure will go to the town attorney and then the Governance, Organization and Legislation committee.
At Large Councilor Andy Steinberg, who chairs the TSO Committee, said the bylaw is on track to be considered for adoption before the current council’s two-year term ends.
