Hammond council passes gas station curfew ordinance
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The Hammond Common Council voted 7-2 on Monday to approve an ordinance restricting the hours of the city’s 37 gas stations.
Under the ordinance, gas stations will have to close from midnight to 5 a.m. beginning Nov. 1. The move was first proposed last month after a 2 a.m. homicide that took place at a gas station in June.
City officials, including Mayor Tom McDermott, said having the law in place would not only reduce crime, but prevent police officers from being pulled away.
“My staff went through every single stat that occurred from 2019 to the present, and at the gas stations that are open 24 hours, we’ve had 1,803 calls for service,” McDermott told the council. “Stuff does happen during the work day; this stuff is happening in the middle of the night when we should be protecting our neighborhoods. And closing businesses works.”
The ordinance does provide gas stations the ability to apply for yearly exceptions to the ordinance.
The Hammond Board of Public Works & Safety will consider certain items in granting exceptions, including the number of crimes and police calls at a gas station, access to interstate travelers, and security measures being put in place such as registering security cameras with the city’s BlueNET system through the Fusus platform.
“Hardly any of the gas stations are signed onto our [Fusus] system. Why? They don’t care,” McDermott said. “They’re selling beef jerky 20 minutes after somebody gets shot. We need to fix this problem.”
Our partners at Lakeshore Public Radio report opposition from gas station owners centered around their arguments that much of the crime they’ve seen occurs during the day. They also believe any new regulations should apply to everyone without exception.
Councilors Mark Kalwinski and Barry Tyler Jr. voted against the ordinance.
“There is a chance that this could help. There’s also a chance that the issues that we’re seeing at these gas stations — whether they be carjackings, burglaries, whatever — could move to other businesses that are open during that time,” Tyler said. “And so, I just want to make sure that if we’re going to pass something, that it is as effective as possible.”
McDermott acknowledged the possibility that the city could face legal action as a result of the ordinance but expressed confidence that the city would win.
You can watch the full council meeting below. Discussion on the gas station ordinance begins around the 18:15 mark.