Camping vs. the First Amendment

City may look to update an old law in wake of "No camping" legislation

Artist Dave Papa, wearing a hat, speaks to a potential customer on Broadway in Saratoga Springs. (Photo: Steve Thurston)

Saratoga Springs is nothing if not a music city, and busking — street performing — is part of that music tradition: “The City Council of the City of Saratoga Springs finds that performances by various artists in public places enhance our City's environment and character. Such artistic efforts are both a valuable cultural experience and a forum for the expression of ideas in a free country,” the city’s code says in the introduction of the “street performance” chapter.

However, the new “No camping law” has exposed a problem in that sitting on most city property and using a chair to do so is not allowed under the new law. The busking law says nothing about chairs or other objects one might use in order to play an instrument, so the supposition could be that chairs are allowed.

“Sometimes they don’t mesh perfectly, and sometimes, when that happens, either discretion is necessary in their enforcement or you have to go back and maybe review the laws and make them consistent,” Assistant City Attorney Tony Izzo said of city laws in general. “I’m assuming