"You guys are trying to bring in investors and all of that. Investors come here and see the homeless and say we don't want to build here, so you're trying to push them all out," said one homeless advocate.
"There's only one intention and that is to deal with people's safety. There's no discrimination here," said Fresno City Councilman Larry Westerlund.
Children's Hospital complained about a similar ordinance two years ago because hundreds of thousands of dollars in median solicitations are raised on Kids Day.
The new ordinance allows median solicitations for people who get permits. The measure passed six to one Thursday and it's up for final approval next week.
