Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Parking topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Rising Sun reviews draft parking ordinance to curb narrow‑street congestion
Summary
Town Administrator presented ordinance 2024‑01 to set minimum street widths tied to on‑street parking, specify driveway and parking‑space sizes, and introduce a tiered formula for on‑street parking in new subdivisions; the ordinance will be considered at a future board meeting.
Town Administrator presented a draft ordinance on Aug. 22 that would change how Rising Sun requires on‑ and off‑street parking in new subdivisions, aiming to prevent situations where emergency and service vehicles cannot pass due to on‑street parking and narrow travel lanes.
The ordinance ties minimum travelled‑way widths to on‑street parking allowances: 22 feet where no parking is allowed, 28 feet if parking is allowed on one side, and 36 feet where parking is permitted on both sides. The town would also specify minimum off‑street parking‑space and driveway dimensions; Administrator said "a parking space on a residential driveway to be considered a parking space has to be 22 feet long by 10 feet wide." The draft imports EPA vehicle‑size standards to define compact, mid‑size and full‑size vehicles so developers cannot count undersized spaces as compliant.
A key change is a graduated formula for required on‑street parking by development scale: the first 50 homes would require two on‑street spaces each; homes 51–100 would require one additional space per unit; units 101–200 would be counted as 0.75 spaces each; and units 201 and above would count as 0.5 spaces each. Administrator gave the example that a 202‑unit subdivision would require 226 additional on‑street spaces under that formula. Developers may either widen roads to accommodate parking or provide nearby "satellite" overflow parking within 300 feet of the homes the satellite serves.
The draft allows credit for developers who provide additional off‑street parking (for example larger garages or deeper driveways), and it includes allowances for temporary special‑event front‑yard parking for up to 48 hours on suitable surfaces to avoid yard damage. Administrator stated the changes also clarify existing limits on converting front yards to permanent parking and set surface‑quality requirements to reduce mud tracking onto public roads.
The public hearing drew no public commenters on this item; the board did not vote and the ordinance will be considered by the board at a future meeting.
