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Select Board hears residents and staff about hazardous parking near Kenneth Welch Drive; staff to map ownership and enforcement options
Summary
Board and staff discussed persistent off-road and shoulder parking at the industrial area near Kenneth Welch Drive, including parking on private fields and near hydrants; staff will research property ownership, permit conditions and potential parking-fee adjustments and return with options.
The Select Board heard public safety and planning concerns about vehicles parking on the shoulders, in fields and in wooded areas along Kenneth Welch Drive and nearby roads adjacent to the Cranberry Bog area.
Police and town staff said many vehicles are parking off the pavement on privately owned property or on town-owned parcels; enforcement options are limited where vehicles are parked on private land and when property owners have implicitly allowed the parking. The police chief explained that, from photographic evidence, only a small minority of vehicles were subject to a standard on-street parking citation; the rest were on private property or areas without posted restrictions.
Department of Public Works staff and the police chief recommended initially contacting businesses that rely on employee parking at the site to seek off-site or consolidated parking solutions. Board members asked staff to identify property owners (private and town-owned) for the areas where vehicles are parking, to check applicable special-permit parking conditions for businesses at 310 Kenneth Welch, and to return with enforcement and regulatory options. The police chief and administration also suggested reviewing the town's parking fine schedule; meeting comments noted blocking a hydrant citation in Lakeville currently carries a low fine compared with other communities and that raising fines could be a deterrent.
The board asked staff to prepare a follow-up report and, if warranted, a proposed change to parking fines and enforcement procedures for a future meeting.
