To: Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council
From: Steve Potter, City Manager
Prepared By: Liz Habkirk, Deputy City Manager
TITLE:
Title
Access to Reproductive Health Care Facilities
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendation
Approve the first reading and introduction of an ordinance amending the Napa Municipal Code to add a new Chapter 12.72, "Access to Reproductive Health Care Facilities."
Body
DISCUSSION:
During the City Council meeting on August 18, 2020, Council received a presentation from the Police Chief (former Chief Robert Plummer) on issues related to the regulation of protests on sidewalks near reproductive health care facilities. The Chief provided information on existing local ordinances that regulate general issues related to the use of sidewalks, as well as California Penal Code sections that regulate interfering or intimidating conduct near reproductive health care facilities. Following that discussion, Council directed staff to prepare an ordinance that will more particularly address ongoing concerns that have been identified in the City of Napa.
The issue of safe access to reproductive health care facilities is one that has been discussed and regulated by many jurisdictions across the country. In Napa, the Police Department has been the City's primary point of contact for interactions occurring near the reproductive health care facility at 1735 Jefferson Street (Planned Parenthood). Police Department representatives have regularly communicated with Planned Parenthood management, as well as organizers of community groups of protestors and others who congregate on the sidewalk in front of planned parenthood, with the goal of providing for City sidewalks that are safe for public use. In the last five years, the Police Department has received approximately 90 calls for service at the location, mainly related to issues such as blocking of the sidewalk to pedestrians and those seeking to enter the facility, impeding the movement of ...
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