Council adopts ordinance restricting 18-wheeler parking after public raises legal and drafting concerns

The City of Baker adopted Ordinance 2025-20, a new regulation covering parking of 18-wheelers and tank-transport vehicles on public and private property, after a public hearing in which residents and policy students pressed the council to tighten the language. Council Member Dunn moved adoption; President Pastor Murphy seconded; the ordinance passed on a unanimous vote.

A public commenter who identified herself as a student of public policy told the council the draft ordinance contained numerous gaps and vague definitions that could expose the city to legal challenge. "I was able to see so many holes, so many gaps, vagueness," the commenter said, warning the measure "won't hold up in court" without clearer definitions, security requirements for designated lots (lighting, cameras, fencing), provisions for drivers' access to trucks and explicit due-process language for enforcement. She also raised equity questions such as why the draft focused on trucks and not other large vehicles such as school buses.

During the hearing another speaker argued that many of the operational items the commenter raised'lighting, security and lot-management'would be the responsibility of the private property owner leasing space to truck drivers, not the city. Council members said they had heard complaints from local business owners about trucks parking on private property and blocking operations; the ordinance was described as a tool to address those complaints.

Despite the concerns raised, the council moved the ordinance to a vote and approved it without amendments. Council members said the measure responds to local complaints about truck parking on business property and that enforcement and lot-level security arrangements are often handled by property owners. The ordinance will be enforced according to the city's code-enforcement procedures.