The item was tabled to June 16 to consider less strict policies than those proposed during the May 19 meeting.
The overview
Police Chief Emmitt Jackson presented an ordinance prohibiting large vehicles including campers, boats, boat trailers, semi-trucks, recreational vehicles and portable storage containers from parking on residential roads. Large vehicles and trailers cannot be parked on non-residential roads in the town for longer than 12 hours.
An exception was included for individuals actively loading or unloading a vehicle, which allows the individual to park the vehicle adjacent to a residential home for no more than 24 hours, according to town documents.
Breaking the law would result in a $500 fine, according to town documents.
The discussion
Council was concerned that the changes were too restrictive and didn’t give residents enough time to load and unload trucks within the 24-hour active loading time frame.
"I just think that maybe there is a way for us to tweak it just a little bit without making it more cumbersome for [police officers]," Council Member Cynthia Hermann said.
One suggestion included giving case specific permits to allow a resident to extend how long they can have their large vehicle parked on the street. This would include guidance from the council on what exceptions could be allowed so that Jackson can grant permits according to the instructions from the ordinance, Town Attorney Brenda McDonald said.
Another suggestion was creating restrictions for specific streets based on how narrow or wide the residential road is.
“Keep in mind, these are officers that are going to have to go out and enforce a specific ordinance,” Jackson said. “If that ordinance is too vague, too broad or allows too many what-ifs or asterisks, you end up with an ordinance that has no enforceability.”
The backstory
Jackson suggested a change to the ordinance due to complaints from residents about large trucks and trailers parking on residential streets.
The ordinance currently states that large trucks can park on residential streets for a 12-hour time period, which means that trucks tend to leave before the 12 hours is complete and return the next day for an additional 12 hours, Jackson said.
What's next?
Council members will give Jackson their suggestions and he will bring a revised ordinance to the June 16 council meeting.
