The ordinance, which will be put into effect later this year, is hoped to increase the economic position of Philadelphia, but it faces much opposition from those supporting the homeless. And so, the battle rages on. City Government is concerned about maintaining a positive quality of life for its residents.
Council wants pedestrians to use the sidewalks without fear of being harassed by panhandlers.
Citizens and visitors should feel comfortable while going to work, dining out, and shopping in Center City and other business districts. Sidewalks are for everyone, they say, even those who have nowhere else to go. Baker cited a similar ordinance in Ohio which made it a crime to sit or lie down on Cincinnati's downtown sidewalks and to panhandle in the area. The federal District Court in Cincinnati found this sidewalk ordinance unconstitutional because the court defined begging, sitting, and lying down in this context as acts of expression. The ordinance will only be enforced on certain people.