Signs at a South Randall Road shopping center in South Elgin warning that “panhandling or begging” is prohibited by village ordinance were not placed there by the village and are not accurate, South Elgin spokesman Craig Pierce said.
Their appearance “is as mysterious to us as it is to anyone,” said Pierce, who indicated they would be removed and the situation is being investigated by the South Elgin code enforcement office.
Photos of the signs appeared on social media sites with the suggestion that the village placed them around the 350 S. Randall Road center, which is anchored by a Kohl’s store.
While some comments left by readers lauded the warnings — “Kudos to South Elgin for placing no panhandling signs around the neighborhood and intersections” — others correctly noted that it’s unconsitutional to prohibit panhandling.
The village has no such ordinance, Pierce said, but that’s not to say that it’s not an issue.
South Elgin officials have “heard from residents and business owners with concerns about panhandlers,” he said. “We’ve gotten some resident concerns, and we’ve also heard from business owners who ask what can be done.”
There are limits to what can be done because a 2021 federal court ruling found that pandhandling, essentially the act of someone asking for money or something else as gift with no expectation of repayment, is protected as a First Amendment right.
“The village’s legal representation has indicated our police officers can issue citations if the activity impedes or obstructs traffic,” Pierce said. “Otherwise, a person holding up a sign asking for money, food or a job is protected by the First Amendment.”
Stacey Hansen, a senior property manager for Bonnie Management Corp. of Des Plaines, said she has not heard of any concerns or complaints from shopping center tenants about people begging for money.
Social media commenters said they had been approached there and at other parts of the village where panhandling regularly occurs.
Elgin has received similar complaints from residents, officials say.
It was a big subject a few years ago when the Supreme Court ruling came down, Elgin Mayor Dave Kaptain said.
“The issue becomes that they have a first amendment right to be able to do that,” Kaptain said. “You can’t stop one particular group unless you stop everybody else,” including charity groups who often ask for donations at public locations, he said.
That said, the mayor acknowledged he has seen an increase in the number of panhandlers in the area. In one case, a person who was asking for money at night on the Kimball Street bridge had to be asked by police to leave because it was creating a potentially dangerous situation, he said.
Police can get involved if a panhandler gets aggressive or causes a hazardous situation for themselves or others, Kaptain said.
What he has noticed, he said, is that “these guys are professionals. It’s their job. … It becomes competitive.”
And drivers being approached for money time and again get “worn down,” Kaptain said. “I think people will just drive by (and ignore them).”
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
