Glendale to review ordinance after Supreme Court rejects day laborer restrictions

Glendale officials plan to revisit a city ordinance limiting sidewalk solicitations after the U.S. Supreme Court this week rejected Redondo Beach’s bid to revive regulations on where day laborers can solicit work from passing drivers.

In 2010, Glendale officials postponed revisions to its own law, which is less restrictive than Redondo Beach regulations, as they waited for the higher court decision.

With that out of the way, Glendale City Atty. Mike Garcia said his office would reviewing the city’s ordinance “more closely to see if additional refinements to our ordinance are necessary.”

Redondo Beach had appealed to the Supreme Court after a lower court ruled in favor of day laborer advocates who sued the city.

Glendale banned soliciting from curbs in 1994, but loosened the ordinance in 2008 after also being sued by laborer advocates. Glendale’s rules now allow solicitation from the sidewalk, parkway and curb so long as the vehicle is parked.

Redondo Beach’s law prevents day laborers from soliciting in the public right-of-way.

Included in budget reductions last year, Glendale cut $90,000 in funding to a day laborer work center on San Fernando Road, which was established to minimize the impact of people who gathered looking for work, especially near Home Depot.

City spokesman Tom Lorenz said since the center closed in July, there has not been an increase in citations for littering, public urination or other minor infractions in the area.

“There is an obvious appearance of persons hanging out, appearance of blight, but it is too soon to see issues arising,” Lorenz said in an email. “These laborers know the Glendale [police officers] and how they will react to anything getting out of hand. They are staying in check.”

-- Brittany Levine, Times Community News

Twitter: @brittanylevine