Rising Sun reviews ordinances on parking, school speed cameras and subdivision nutrient controls

Rising Sun mayor and town commissioners reviewed three draft ordinances at their Sept. 10 meeting, including changes to parking requirements for new residential developments, a school‑zone speed‑camera safety program and a requirement that developers address nutrient runoff in subdivision plans.

Calvin, speaking as town staff, summarized Ordinance 2024‑01 as changes to the land development and zoning code that would set criteria for how much off‑street parking developers must provide and said the goal was to account for occasional special events such as July 4 and Thanksgiving. "That's in a nutshell the summary of that ordinance," he said.

On Ordinance 2024‑03, Calvin described a proposal from the police chief to place speed cameras at specific school‑area locations to identify drivers exceeding speed limits and to issue either warnings or citations. "...identify people that are speeding and issue either warning notices or actual violations," he said. He also noted the ordinance had an advertised public hearing on Aug. 22 to solicit community comment.

Ordinance 2024‑05 would incorporate a state nutrient‑reduction requirement into the town's subdivision and land development process so that, when developers build larger tracts, they must address nutrient runoff and related water‑quality protections as part of stormwater management. Calvin said the measure reflects state expectations for reducing nutrients that harm waterways.

The meeting record for Sept. 10 does not show final votes on these three ordinances; the staff summaries and references to the Aug. 22 public hearings were presented for the commission’s consideration. The town did not adopt these ordinances at the Sept. 10 meeting, based on the transcript.