ST. PETERSBURG - Despite possible constitutional concerns, the City Council on Thursday told its legal staff to draft a law banning solicitors from public roads seven days a week.
The proposed ordinance will come before the council July 8. A public hearing will come later. The proposal would make it illegal to ask for donations or sell anything from driving lanes or medians.
Last week, a council subcommittee contemplated a weekday ban, but after hearing from neighborhood activists, decided to recommend the seven-day ban.
The council sees the proposal as a safety measure to keep solicitors from walking through traffic. But some members said they are concerned about possible legal challenges and hurting vendors trying to earn a livelihood.
In other action Thursday, the council without comment unanimously elected Bill Foster to serve a six-month term as chairman.
The vote represented the epilogue to December's marathon chair election, which required 49 votes during more than an hour before the council compromised to break a deadlock between Foster and James Bennett.
The decision was to let Bennett serve for six months, followed by Foster for six months. Typically, the council chair serves one year.
