Latest southern Colorado news, weather and sports from FOX21 News

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- The controversial No-Solicitation Zone in Colorado Springs is gone.

Monday, the Colorado Springs City Council voted to approve the withdrawal of the zone from the City’s panhandling ordinance.

People are still prohibited from actively soliciting, or panhandling, within 20 feet of a residential or business entryway.

According to city officials, the decision to nix the zone was made after consulting with the city attorney.

In February, a federal judge affirmed the No-Solicitation Zone after the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed an injunction to stop it. The ACLU claimed free speech was wrongly curbed by the ordinance.

The organization said on Tuesday that it is satisfied that the City nixed the zone.

"The ACLU of Colorado is pleased that Colorado Springs has decided to repeal this overbroad, ill-advised and unconstitutional ordinance," it said in a statement. "It was a tremendous overreach to try to forbid any and all solicitation in a huge 12-city block downtown area.  The City was unable to cite a single case in which a court had upheld such a breathtakingly broad restriction of speech."

Colorado Springs City Attorney Chris Melcher said new downtown cameras have accomplished the zone’s ultimate goal.

"Both the passage of the new 20’ rule and the installation of the cameras downtown have led to a significant improvement in the safety, comfort, and attractiveness of our downtown," Melcher said. "In just their first few months the cameras have successfully led to several arrests, and the City’s focus on stopping persistent and unwanted solicitation in the downtown has greatly reduced that activity.  These two initiatives have accomplished most of the purpose of the no solicitation zone, and we, along with the downtown merchants, downtown residents, and our entire community, are pleased with the progress," Melcher said.

The City said nixing the zone lets it conserve its resources.

"At this time it does not make sense for the City to spend additional resources on the ACLU challenge, particularly given that the federal court was not sympathetic to our arguments and additional courts have not yet supported these zones," Melcher said. "By withdrawing the no-solicitation zone now, before a trial or a ruling on the merits, the City will conserve resources and retain the option in the future to revisit a zone if it’s needed for the benefit of our community and our downtown." 

In the end, the ACLU explained that the issue was about free expression.

"We are delighted that the free expression rights of musicians, theater performers, nonprofit fundraisers and others will be restored and respected."