Charlottetown councillors want to crack down on panhandling

Charlottetown is looking to beef up its rules on panhandling something several city councillors say is on the rise.

At Monday night's council meeting, some councillorsexpressed concerns about an increase of panhandlingand said numerous complaints have been received from residents and tourists.

The current nuisance bylaw doesn't have many rules around the issue. The committee in charge is hoping to change that.

"We're looking to add a couple of new phases to the bylaw, including aggressive solicitation and not being able to solicit,"said councillor Jason Coady, the chair of the protective and emergency services committee.

"Where there's ATMs or bus stops, where people have to congregatethat's what we're looking at trying to eliminate."

Coady said the city is working on new ideas to help those in need whomay be panhandling.