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Ordinance committee recommends additional loading space and extended hours near High Street for VCARE after safety concerns
Summary
The committee recommended establishing a second loading/unloading space and extending hours for a VCARE stop near Dwight Street to reduce unsafe curbside unloading for clients with mobility devices; staff will prepare ordinance language to implement the change.
The Ordinance Committee on May 21 recommended changing designated curbside loading rules near High Street and Dwight Street to provide additional loading space and extended hours for VCARE, the social-service provider that operates client vans and transports participants with wheelchairs and other mobility needs.
Nicole Mason, a representative for VCARE, told the committee the program has grown substantially since it first occupied space on Dwight Street and that vans transporting clients often require extra room for wheelchair ramps. "Some of our patients cannot be in the vans for a certain amount of time because it triggers their tics and it sets them off. So the faster we can unload them and load the other ones, it will be great," she said.
City staff and councilors described several operational options discussed with the Department of Public Works and PVTA, including extending an existing loading space's hours and creating a second legal loading space nearby. Jeff (city staff) described a recommended change that would create a second space immediately adjacent to the current one, altering the posted time ranges to better match VCARE operations (Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m.–3 p.m.).
After discussion, the committee approved a motion recommending the ordinance change described in the DGR committee recommendation: convert the single hour-long weekday space into two marked loading spaces with extended hours. The committee recognized constraints on permanently assigning a space to a single private nonprofit but determined that designated loading/unloading time and signage would improve safety for VCARE clients and reduce traffic conflicts.
Ending: The committee approved the recommendation and asked staff to draft the ordinance amendment and coordinate with DPW to implement signage and time limits; the committee noted funding and enforcement details would follow through DPW and the mayor’s office.
