PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — When Providence City Council's Miguel Sanchez isn't at city hall, he's on the streets helping the homeless. Sanchez told 12 News he's seen a significant rise in Rhode Islanders needing help. That's why he knew he needed to do something when he saw the U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing cities to ban the homeless from sleeping outside in public spaces. "In my opinion, it's very anti-humanistic," Sanchez said. Cities like Cranston and Fall River have already made moves to try and allow officers to fine those camping on public property due to public safety concerns. But Sanchez wants to prevent that from happening in the capital city, so he introduced a new ordinance. "It's a pretty common sense proposal," he said. But Councilor Althea Graves told 12 News she believes the city should take a different approach to prevent the homeless from camping in public parks. "We all know there's issues that come up in all communities," she said. "There's good, there's bad and there's ugly. We don't want the bad and the ugly in the parks." Sanchez argues that his ordinance would only prohibit fines and would still allow officers to take action if there's a public safety concern. "This doesn't do anything to tie the hands of our Providence Police Department and EMS service, or even other social services," he said. Whether the ordinance passes or not, both Sanchez and Graves agree that more needs to be done to address the ongoing housing crisis. "I think we're trying to put a Band-Aid on some of the things," Graves said. "The biggest problem is getting housing and getting them a place to stay so they don't have to camp out on public property." Sanchez's ordinance now heads to Providence's Special Committee on HOPE, where the measure will be discussed further and potential changes could be made. It will then head to the Providence City Council for a vote. 12 News reached out to Mayor Brett Smiley's office, to which a spokesperson said he would be reviewing the ordinance alongside his legal team. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily Roundup SIGN UP NOW