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Ordinance committee continues public hearing on residential parking rules to April 14
Summary
A public hearing on zoning changes to limit yard parking, set caps by parcel/bedrooms, and clarify enforcement was opened and continued to April 14 to allow the planning board to refine proposals and provide a recommendation.
The Ordinance Committee opened a public hearing Feb. 24 on proposed zoning changes to clarify where residents may park on their lots and how parking violations would be enforced.
Chair Meg McGrath Smith said the planning board has already begun a review and will provide a proposal to the committee. Committee members debated options including a hard cap on vehicles per parcel, using the number of bedrooms to set limits, or restricting parking to a defined driveway or paved parking pad.
Councilor Talheimer urged exceptions for certain practical situations such as winter parking bans that temporarily push vehicles onto private yards to keep streets clear. The chair noted that Section 6.1.8 of the zoning code currently prohibits parking in landscaped open space within front yards and establishes a special‑permit process for front‑yard driveways, but that the ordinance does not address side or back yards.
Members agreed the planning board should study whether a numeric cap or a per‑vehicle enforcement approach would be more workable and whether fines should scale with the number of vehicles. The committee voted to continue the hearing to April 14 at 6:30 p.m. so the planning board can return recommendations and drafting assistance.
No ordinance was adopted at the hearing; the committee limited itself to discussion and scheduling the continuation.
