Committee reports out ordinance to reserve rear City Hall parking for employees; council approves 7-0 to move forward

Medford City — On April 8 the Committee of the Whole voted to report out a proposed ordinance change to reserve the rear parking area at Medford City Hall for municipal employees during City Hall hours. The committee sent the proposal to full council by a 7-0 vote.

Why it matters: The administration proposed the change after the city discovered potential excavation work in an overflow commuter lot used by employees; officials said reserving the rear lot would ensure employees have reliable access to parking during business hours. Councilors asked for communication plans and a warning period before enforcement begins.

The proposed amendment, as described in committee, would repeal the visitor-parking allowance for the lot directly behind City Hall and make most rear spaces available only to City Hall employees during City Hall hours. Exceptions named in committee were electric-vehicle charging spaces, handicap-accessible spaces, and the veteran—s parking space, which would remain open to qualifying visitors. The director said the lot contains roughly 96 spaces (including four handicapped spaces) and that the employee-only restriction would apply during business hours (described in committee as the City Hall schedule: generally 8:30 a.m. through late afternoon with slightly different Wednesday and Friday hours).

Councilor Lazaro asked whether the number of employee-commuters matches available spaces; staff did not provide a precise count of employees who park at City Hall, and the director said she would look into that. Councilors requested a 30-day communication period and several weeks of warning before citations would be issued when the employee-only restriction is enforced; the director said the department plans two weeks of warnings after an initial public-notice period and would avoid immediately issuing tickets the first day enforcement begins.

The committee approved the motion to report out the repeal of the ordinance (motion by Councilor Scarpelli, seconded by Councilor Singh). The motion passed 7-0 (Councilors Callahan, Lazaro, Lemming, Scarpelli, Singh and President Barris and Vice President Collins voted yes). The repeal will be scheduled for full council consideration at the April 29 meeting, staff said.

Next steps: The parking director will prepare communications for employees and the public, give a warning period before enforcement, and provide any requested employee parking counts to councilors before the full council meeting.