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Terry council hears residents, businesses split over Spring Street parking plan
Summary
Residents and business owners urged the council to preserve angled parking on Spring Street, citing historical use and economic impacts; council members said the state Department of Transportation must sign off and no ordinance will be adopted until the town completes research and a public hearing.
Chair (S1) moved the Spring Street parking item up on the agenda to accommodate community members, and residents and business owners filled the council chamber to press the council on whether to allow angled parking on the state highway through town.
Russ (S3), who presented historical photos and engineering measurements, said the town has used diagonal parking for decades and cited a provision the speaker identified as Montana Code Annotated "61.80.355." He said civil-engineering guidance favors 45-degree angled stalls and told the council angled parking could provide roughly 13 spaces where parallel parking would yield as few as six. "We've been lawfully using diagonal parking for over 100 years," Russ said, urging the council to avoid a change that would reduce spaces and harm local businesses.
A local business owner (S7) said losing parking would undercut the fragile downtown economy: "Anything that affects one business affects us all," the owner said, asking the council to weigh economic effects alongside traffic engineering.
Sheriff Lewis (S2) and other speakers raised safety and enforcement issues that would follow any change. They discussed vehicle lengths (examples given in the transcript: a 22-foot-6-inch pickup and another around 20 feet), sightlines, and the importance of painted lines to make angled parking workable in winter. S2 also relayed that state officials told the town they could not authorize an angled-parking configuration without a local ordinance and state sign-off.
Council members repeatedly said no formal decision had been made. Chair (S1) said the town will research legal limits and coordinate with the state DOT before drafting any ordinance; the council will hold a public hearing if an ordinance is proposed. "We're not anywhere near close," the chair said. The council emphasized the process will likely take several months.
What happens next: staff will review state code and existing interlocal and mutual-aid agreements as part of a legal and engineering review, then return to the council with options and a schedule for any required public hearing.
