Mike Wolanin | The Republic An exterior view of The Commons in downtown Columbus, Ind., Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2021.
COLUMBUS, Ind. — The Commons Board has approved a final set of rules for visitors, following some discussion with individuals who found a previous draft to be against the homeless.
The rules document, which was approved Wednesday, begins by stating, “Welcome to The Commons! We hope you enjoy your visit and ask that everyone be respectful of others and staff in order that all may enjoy our community event space.”
The document goes on to say that visitors should refrain from:
- Soliciting on the premises
- Panhandling on the premises
- Open alcohol containers outside of designated event rental space
- Smoking or vaping
- Cluttering of spaces or walkways
- Leaving items and personal belongings unattended
- Sleeping or lying down
- Illegal substances
- Bringing pets inside the building except service animals
- Violence or roughhousing
- Intentional damage to property
“Violation of any of these rules may result in the issuing of a trespass notice and removal from the facility,” the document states.
The Commons facility will be the first Columbus Parks and Recreation facility to have these rules put in place, according to minutes from a previous board meeting. “Once in place, the remaining parks facilities will adopt rules or an adapted version to suit their needs,” the minutes state.
Previous drafts also prohibited loitering and the use of small appliances, such as crockpots, on the premises, but these provisions did not make it into the final version.
At The Commons Board’s July meeting, about 10 individuals, including some members of the Democratic Socialists of America’s (DSA) Bartholomew County chapter, showed up to express their concerns about the rules.
Roughly the same number of people were in the audience at Wednesday’s meeting, with some offering comments and questions.
Board president Tracy Souza said that she and Commons manager Shanda Sasse spoke with DSA treasurer Blake Fields about a week prior to the meeting.
“I really appreciated the opportunity to have the dialogue,” Souza said. “And I really appreciated that you rose to a challenge of saying ‘Come back and give me something I can constructively use.’ I think the feedback was really excellent.”
“I think you’ve done a lot to meet me part way here,” Fields said.
He added that after sharing the revised rules with others, the only thing they were concerned about was the rule about sleeping and lying down and how that might affect individuals with disabilities.
When asked what enforcement of the rules would look like, Sasse said that staff will begin by talking to the guest about the issue. They might also contact the police for a wellness check in some situations, such as if someone is sleeping, though she added that this is not their first choice.
“We want to address it personally first,” she said.
Board attorney Alex Whitted said it’s his understanding that if there is an alleged violation of the rules, staff would initially see if there’s a way to “amicably resolve” the situation without law enforcement.
“If there’s an allegation, for instance, that there’s a violation of Indiana state code — for instance, that there’s violence or roughhousing — then law enforcement could become involved, just like they would be involved in any other allegation of criminal misconduct within the city,” he said.
Columbus City Council liaison Grace Kestler suggested that Commons staff should consider contacting the Columbus Stride Center for wellness checks before calling the police.
The center, established as a crisis intervention agency which opened in April in Columbus, serves those experiencing mental health or substance abuse crisis 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The center is located at 1075 Second St., Columbus.
