Grace period ends and some squeegee workers will get ticketed
BALTIMORE -- Baltimore's squeegee ban went into effect at six "hot spot" intersections around the city in January. Now, the grace period for that activity has ended and officers are issuing citations to offenders.
Those "hot spot" intersections include President Street at I-83 and Conway Street near the Inner Harbor where police say motorist Timothy Reynolds was shot and killed by a then-14-year-old squeegee worker after he left his car and confronted a group of squeegee workers with a bat in July.
Other '"no-squeegee zones" include Sinclair Lane and Moravia Road in Northeast Baltimore, Wabash and Northern Parkway, and part of Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard.
Also, Mount Royal at North Avenue has been deemed a "no-squeegee zone." That is where federal judge James Bredar called the police after he said squeegee workers harassed him and spit on his car last year.
City residents say the controversial practice appears to have slowed down in some areas ever since the ban went into effect.
"I'm seeing less," Brandon, a Baltimore resident, said. "I haven't really seen a strong presence like that. I guess it's working you know."
So far, officers have given 18 warning to squeegee workers walking and standing in the roadways since the ban began on Jan. 10.
"I think the mayor is trying his best, but we all have to come together as a community and also help because it's not just a one-man army," another resident said.
The Squeegee Collaborative developed the strategy. The collaborative brought together more than 100 people including representatives of the mayor's office, squeegee workers and business leaders.
The strategy also calls for squeegee kids to develop a code of conduct and self-regulate.
Baltimore City State's Attorney Ivan Bates has been supportive of the plan and several philanthropic leaders are also standing behind the new strategy.