Resident warns one-permit rule leaves Walnut Street families without parking

Christine Burns, a Walnut Street resident, told the Borough Council of Clifton Heights that the borough's new permit-parking program is creating severe parking shortages for long-term residents.

Burns said she has lived on Walnut Street since 1986 and described a household with “5 cars in my family. I get 1 permit,” adding, “we really are…we're being screwed.”

The comment came during the council's public-participation portion. Burns said she had spoken with Borough staff member Tom Acosy, who explained the program is intended to prioritize business access, and asked whether households could obtain more than one permit. A council speaker said the borough is monitoring the rollout and “was gonna look at possibly increasing to a second…permit for households,” but added staff want to see how the program settles before changing rules.

Why it matters: the one-permit limit affects residents' ability to park near their homes and intersects with the borough's effort to reserve some curb parking for nearby businesses. Residents said limited curb space and weekend or evening events at nearby rental halls create further demand for street parking.

Council and staff described the local circumstances cited by Burns. Speakers reported the following approximate counts for her block: about 32 houses, roughly 18 with driveways and 14 without; on-street parking spaces for her block were described informally as “maybe 13–14.” Staff also said 10–11 resident permits had been issued so far (one speaker said 11; another said 10) and that an earlier expectation of 40 permits was not accurate for that street. The borough noted that Walnut Street is one of the few streets with access to a permanent parking lot tied to resident permits.

Burns raised a related concern about late-night events at a nearby hall in the old Republican Club building on Walnut Street, saying those events can run until 1 a.m. and that current rules prohibit overnight parking in the lot, which leads to more on-street demand. Borough staff confirmed the rental hall and its evening events were factors considered when designing the local restrictions.

Councilors and staff told Burns they would continue monitoring enforcement and permit counts. Manager Racozzi and the council noted a recently awarded $35,000 grant to fund a borough-wide parking and business-district survey; the manager said the money will be used to create a GIS-based map of parking supply and restrictions and that the survey team (JP, John and Wayne were named as staff leads) will review scenarios such as household permit limits and the placement of paid or restricted parking.

Clarifying details recorded in the meeting: the borough said it had sold about 10–11 resident permits on Walnut Street so far; councilors referenced earlier discussion of possibly allowing a second household permit but said that change would be considered only after monitoring; speakers described 32 houses on the block with about 18 driveways, 14 without.

Council action: there was no formal council vote to change permit limits at this meeting; councilors said the program will be monitored and the parking survey will inform future decisions.

The borough's review and the planned GIS parking survey are expected to inform whether the permit limit will change and how restrictions will be applied elsewhere in Clifton Heights.