CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) - City leaders in a popular South Carolina tourist destination are hoping to reduce panhandling with restrictions on sitting or lying down along two main thoroughfares.
The Post and Courier reports that Charleston’s City Council passed an ordinance on Tuesday that bans sitting or lying down on sidewalks along the two streets between 8 a.m. and 2 a.m. The ban is for stretches of King and Market streets in the heart of the downtown commercial district.
The newspaper reports that the ban applies to everyone but is aimed at panhandlers who choose spots where they sit and ask people walking by for money.
Business owners have complained that some of the people asking for money can be aggressive and scare off customers.
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