HomeMy WebLinkAbout22649 1 ORDINANCE NO. 22,649
2
3 AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND LITTLE ROCK,ARK.,REV. CODE § 17-131
4 TO ADDRESS A PUBLIC SAFETY LIMITATION ON THE PEDESTRIAN
5 USE OF CERTAIN MEDIANS WITHIN THE CITY LIMITS;TO DECLARE
6 AN EMERGENCY;AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
7
8 WHEREAS, because of problems with people utilizing medians on heavily traveled streets
9 within the City of Little Rock,Arkansas ("the City") for various purposes including the exercise
10 of opinions or positions on civic issues, or the sale of items to drivers of automobiles, a provision
11 was enacted which forbade certain activities on street medians and was codified as Little Rock,
12 Ark., Rev. Code § 17-131 (1988); and,
13 WHEREAS, after careful consideration it has been determined that these provisions are either
14 outdated now, or that the ban was too broad to meet the public safety interests of the City while
15 still providing appropriate alternatives for expression;
16 NOW,THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE
17 CITY OF LITTLE ROCK,ARKANSAS:
18 Section 1. Little Rock,Ark.,Rev. Code § 17-131 (1988)is hereby amended to read as follows:
19 This ordinance shall be named Ordinance to Establish Boundaries for the Use of
20 Medians by Pedestrians within the City."
21
22 (a) Except as set forth in subsection (e)below, no person shall stand in or enter upon
23 a roadway, a median of 60" or less width, or a portion of a public street, for the
24 purpose of distributing anything to the occupant of any vehicle;
25 (b) No person shall stand in or enter upon a roadway, a median of 60" or less width,
26 or a portion of a public street, for the purpose of soliciting any item, including
27 but not limited to, money, from the occupant of any vehicle;
28 (c) The prohibition on the distribution of anything contained in subsection(a) above
29 does not apply to distribution to the occupant of a non-moving vehicle on a
30 roadway adjacent to a sidewalk if the person who makes the distribution remains
31 on the sidewalk, and if the occupant of the non-moving vehicle voluntarily
32 accepts the distribution;
33 (d) Nothing contained in this section is intended to prohibit solicitation or
34 distribution by any person on a sidewalk to another person on the same sidewalk;
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1 (e) The basic requirements for any person who desires to use medians for any
2 purpose as as follows:
3 (1) The median is at least 60" or more in width to be considered an
4 appropriate median;
5 (2) The person, or persons, engaged in such activity are at least nineteen (19)
6 years of age;
7 (3) The person, or persons, registers at no charge with the Little Rock Police
8 Department and identifies the location where such activity will occur and to
9 the extent known the names of the persons who will engage in such activity
10 on their behalf;
11 (4) No such activity on an appropriate median shall before at least one (1)
12 hour after sunrise, and in any event shall cease one (1) hour before sunset, as
13 these times are provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
14 Administration for Little Rock, Arkansas; and
15 (5) No activity will occur if it is raining,or if for any other reason the roadway
16 or the median at the time of such use is slick.
17 Section 2. This provision is not to interfere in any way with the constitutional rights of
18 any person or persons, nor does it permit any person or persons to:
19 (a) Loiter as that term is defined in the Arkansas Criminal Code;
20 (b) Act in a harassing or threatening manner to another person;
21 (c) Cause alarm to another person or persons; or,
22 (d) Act in a manner that that creates a traffic hazard or impediment.
23 Section 3. Violation of this section, as impacted by this pilot program, shall be subject to the
24 penalties set forth in section 1-9 of the Little Rock Revised Code.
25 Section 4. Severability. In the event any title, section, paragraph, item, sentence, clause, phrase, or
26 word of this ordinance is declared or adjudged to be invalid or unconstitutional, such declaration or
27 adjudication shall not affect the remaining portions of this ordinance, which shall remain in full force and
28 effect as if the portion so declared or adjudged invalid or unconstitutional was not originally a part of this
29 ordinance.
30 Section 5.Repealer. All ordinances or resolutions of the City in conflict herewith are hereby
31 repealed to the extent of such conflict including, but not limited to, Little Rock,Ark., Ordinance No.
32 21,071 (July 14, 2015), Little Rock,Ark., Ordinance no. 21,245 (May 17, 2016). .
33 Section 6.Emergency Clause. In various parts of the corporate limits of the City there are medians on
34 streets that are less than 60" in diameter, but that are being used by various persons for a variety of
35 purposes, and these uses create a public safety hazard in the event traffic should jump a median, or a person
36 should fall from a narrow median;the protection of the public health, safety and welfare make it incumbent
37 upon the City to set appropriate boundaries for the use of such medians;an emergency is hereby found and
38 declared to exist and this ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after the date of its passage.
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1 PASSED:August 19,2025
2 ATTEST: APPROVED:
3
4
5 Allison Segars,City Frank Scott,Jr.,Mayor
6 APPROVED AS TO LEGAL FORM:
7
8 �.
9 Thomas M. Carpenter,City Attorn
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