Valley City Cracks Down on Dress Code Ordinance
It appears that clothing manufacturers are making clothes smaller these days. Inflation might be the cause; maybe the price of cotton and other materials have increased. Therefore, clothing companies are using less material to save cost. Or, maybe people just like to wear more revealing clothing, and the clothing companies are giving their customers what they want. Regardless, everywhere you go these days you see skin- cleavage, stomachs, legs, buttocks, and guys’ thighs.
Valley City passed what many called the Dress Code in November of 2023, and it was controversial at the time. But, Valley City really never enforced it until now, and heads are turning. Four females have been cited in the past two weeks, and the latest two ladies that have been cited has created quite the buzz in Valley City and on social media.
The most controversial part of the ordinance was that any female age 45 or older that was in violation would be fined $500 and have to spend a night in jail. Again, no lady 45 or older has been cited until now. Mrs. Stacy Sweeney, the wife of Valley City’s high school principal, was cited last week. Yesterday, Mrs. London Hilton, the wife of the Valley County Hospital CEO, was cited. Both ladies were ordered to pay the fine, but neither had to spend a night in jail. But, both prominent women were humiliated by having their pictures and offenses posted on social media by the Valley City Police Dept. (VCPD).
The mayor and the police chief couldn’t be reached for comment, however I was able to get a statement from the VCPD spokesperson. He said, “This ordinance has been on the books for over 2 years now. It was well publicized when it was enacted. It hasn’t been enforced, but things have gotten out of hand. It’s understandable to occasionally see teenage girls wearing revealing clothing, so we’ve been lenient on them. But, we’ve seen way too many women 45 and over showing off their stomachs recently. Many of these women have kids in high school and college, and some of them are actually grandmothers. It was time to enforce the ordinance. The VCPD doesn’t care about your social status or who you’re married to; we’re going to enforce the ordinance going forward. Also, no one in violation has spent a night in jail, but that could change in the future. You’ve been warned.”
I was able to talk with some Valley City residents, and I perused local social media groups. The feelings in the community are mixed. Many young people think the VCPD has gone too far, and many older people are glad they’re finally enforcing it.
One young lady and mom said, “This is so crazy. What am I supposed to wear? I want to look trendy and cute. The clothes are just made this way these days. I guess I can’t wear a crop top in town anymore; I’ll just dress like my grandma. It’s so ridiculous! The police chief must be trying to get fired. They tried to make an example out of these high-profile ladies in our community. They better not actually put one of us ladies in jail for a night. It will be on then!”
An older lady commented, “It’s about time they started enforcing this! Every time I go downtown, I see skin, skin, and more skin. It’s not that hard ladies and young men. Cover yourselves up! If you’re a mom or grandma, you shouldn’t be showing off your stomach, legs, or butt. I think most reasonable people agree with that.”
Will the VCPD back down? The next city board meeting should be interesting. Many women on social media have said they will be attending the meeting to have their voices heard. The SRVO will be there to cover it.
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