RIVER FALLS – The River Falls City Council discussed a potential ordinance banning camping on public property during the May 23 meeting.

Previously the city did not have an official policy on camping on public property, other than rules against being in the city’s parks outside of 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. hours and state regulations against camping on highways or adjacent land.

According to the City of River Falls, camping includes tents, vehicles or sleeping materials being established.

Members of the council believed the lack of a specific ordinance left holes in areas such as camping on non-park public property and public right-of-way such as the side of the road and the sidewalk.

A violation of the drafted ordinance would not result in a criminal charge. Instead, the violator would be charged somewhere between $5 and $500 depending on the case.

River Falls Police Chief Gordon Young believes his department has the staff and resources to enforce a potential policy, and the department is looking to city council to guide an approach to enforcement.

City Administrator Scot Simpson suspects there are over 100 nights per year where this issue occurs in River Falls.

Young said the police department has enough shelter space to house people with instability and has connections in place in both Pierce and St. Croix counties.

“Our staff would even be willing to transport those in need to facilities too,” Young said.

Another point of emphasis for members of the council is how to manage people that bring an RV or camper to a friend or family member’s house as part of a visit or trip.

While parking violations such as requirements to move vehicles periodically can help with the issue, some council members expressed concern that RVs and campers could interfere with the roadways if parked on the side of the road.

Simpson said the enforcement of the issue would be largely on a complaint basis, but that is not out of the usual as many of the policies are enforced in that way.

Council members considered potentially allowing homeowners to request permission to allow vehicles to remain for a period.

“You could say for River Falls Days for three days people can camp in certain spots on the right-of-way, or you can designate when the River Falls Days request comes forward from the chamber, they could request that there’s some camping for the carnival workers,” Simpson said.

Alderperson Diane Odeen felt it would be best to avoid getting into each possible specific situation before approval, instead facing the issues as they come after an ordinance is passed.

“My suggestion would be to take this proposed ordinance as it is, and then see what pain points there are, and address them when we have some rather than try to anticipate them ahead of time,” Odeen said.

Alderperson Scott Morrissette disagreed, saying there are some policies that should be put into place before approval.

“If we don’t add some of these, like the RV parking, then that puts the burden on the police force staff to enforce it rather than acknowledge it and allow it,” Morrissette said.

Council members started another debate when discussing if there could be a process for specific reservations or timeframes to allow camping to take place. One of the potential exceptions discussed was people leaving blankets and chairs near the street in preparation for the River Falls Days parade.

Ultimately, no decision was reached by the council, and the ordinance will remain without a reservation process for the second reading.

It was then agreed that the council would bring the policy up for a second reading as is at a future meeting to allow community members to give input.

Interfund loan policy

The council approved an interfund loan policy that had been discussed in previous meetings during talks of the environmental impact fee.

The interest rate of interfund loans will be approved by the city administrator after the finance director recommends it. Repayment period will also be the responsibility of the finance director.

Loans can be audited annually, and city staff will update the council annually with any information on unpaid loans, satisfied loans or outstanding balances.

There was some confusion on the power of City Administrator Simpson, with council members questioning if he would be alone in the decisions to where interfund loans go to, and how the money is spent.

Simpson cleared concerns, stating that the council will still be on the front end of the process with loan decisions, and the city administrator and finance director will oversee the rate and pay period.

Alcohol licenses

The council approved the renewal of 37 liquor and beer licenses including Classes A, B and C renewals.

Moose Lodge and Kwik Trip location #453 on North Main Street missed the meeting and will have their renewals postponed to a later date.