Amid criticism that it targets the homeless, a measure that would ban personal property such as furniture, clothing or household goods from being stored in public spaces, including sidewalks and parks, is up for consideration again at the City Council.

Bill 54 is among the proposals on the agenda when the Council meets Wednesday at Kapolei Hale.

Council members expect to gain more information from the city on exactly the types of complaints that have been filed.

At the most recent public hearing on the measure, city officials said more than 100 complaints had been registered since the start of the year regarding public areas being blocked or obstructed by personal property. Not all were related to homeless individuals.

Complaints ranged from basketball hoops on sidewalks to stacks of tires and people who had set up vending areas on sidewalks.

Supporters of the legislation told of similar situations.

In written testimony to the Council, state Rep. Scott Saiki described areas of his district, Moiliili-McCully, that have been overrun with personal possessions and encampments.

"Such use has impeded pedestrian access and created public health and sanitation issues," Saiki stated. "It has also affected economic activity to the extent that storage occurs near businesses and restaurants."

Many senior citizens in the area who have lived there for many years, he added, "are afraid to walk in their own neighborhoods due to the accumulation of storage on public sidewalks."

The bill, so far, has advanced in the Council with only Councilman Nestor Garcia voting in opposition. But Councilman Romy Cachola also has raised reservations, saying he believes the bill could be used to target the homeless.

Opponents include the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii, which described the bill as another in a line of "piecemeal" attempts by City Council to deal with homelessness, rather than taking a more comprehensive approach.

Bill 54 is up for the second of three required votes by the full Council. If approved, it would go back to committee for further vetting before facing a final vote at the Council’s next monthly meeting in December.

Other measures on the Council agenda include separate resolutions urging the city to develop both a public shooting complex and a paintball gaming facility in Kalaeola.

Another resolution up for consideration urges the formation of a joint federal-state-city task force to tackle prevention of flooding and remediation of flood damage losses on the Leeward Coast.