LEWISTON — A slate of changes to the city’s homeless shelter ordinance were unanimously supported by the City Council on Tuesday as officials continue a push toward operating a city-run shelter.

The amendments, which will require a second reading next month before going into effect, were drafted as the city pursues a 24-hour, low-barrier shelter and also looks to encourage other organizations to step up to help address the homelessness crisis.

The changes will remove several sections of language implemented under the previous council that officials and homeless advocates have said run counter to efforts to get people off the streets and connect them with services that can get them permanent housing.

Items removed from the ordinance include a cap on the number of shelter beds allowed in the city, a requirement for shelter guests to identify themselves, mandatory hours of shelter operation, and more.

Opening a low-barrier shelter — one that won’t deny entry for reasons such as being under the influence, participation in religious services, or a lack of identification — would be a first for Lewiston. The council previously held two workshops to hammer out the language with the city’s shelter committee, which is also pursuing state and federal funding for a city-run shelter.

The committee said current best practice, which is tied to grant funding requirements, is that many homeless people don’t have physical ID, and that requiring one is a barrier to entry, as well as to getting someone the help they need.

Craig Saddlemire, co-chairperson of the shelter committee, described the ordinance changes as attempting to “set a floor” of what the city is requiring shelters to do, but private shelters can then be more restrictive if they want. The city recently selected the nonprofit Kaydenz Kitchen to operate the future city shelter, and the organization is operating a warming center from the former Schemengees Bar & Grille on Lincoln Street.

The ordinance also outlines a “good neighbor” policy, which requires shelters to mitigate disruptive behavior or other issues that cause disturbances to the surrounding neighborhood.

Prior to the first reading Tuesday, Councilor David Chittim offered several amendments to the language that were deemed to be mostly grammatical in nature, however one amendment regarding the “good neighbor” policy was left out.

Chittim said he has been frustrated with the council’s limited ability to discuss and put forward accurate ordinances, but other councilors appeared to signal frustration with spending so much time on the issue. At more than one point, Councilor Tim Gallant made a motion to move the question, ending discussion on the amendments. Gallant said people were “waiting in the wings” to begin shelter projects and he didn’t want to cause delays.

Regarding his view, Chittim said, “My goal here is to make these things as simple as possible, without conflicts and redundancies.”

Councilor Josh Nagine said he appreciated Chittim’s work on the ordinance language and agreed that the council’s process is a “very clunky way” to create policy.