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Council committee discharges older draft and advances revised Sept.15–Nov.1 temporary resident-parking ordinance
Summary
A Salem City Council committee discharged a duplicative 2025 amendment and forwarded a revised ordinance (item 139) that sets temporary resident parking from Sept. 15–Nov. 1 to the full council for second and final passage; councilors and staff discussed rooftop garage access, program costs and outreach.
The Salem City Council committee of the whole voted to discharge an earlier 2025 proposal and recommended second and final passage of a revised temporary resident-parking ordinance that would make the city’s “October” resident-pass period run Sept. 15 through Nov. 1.
The committee discharged amendment 466 after councilors said the newer filing, ordinance 139, largely duplicates it with only modest changes. Transportation Director David Kacharski told the committee he worked with the Transportation Commission and the mayor’s office on 139 and that the main edits replace the word “October” with “temporary” and set a specific Sept. 15–Nov. 1 window. Section C of the redline adds one address (13 Boulevard) and preserves language allowing that site to buy garage passes, which in turn permits roof parking there; Kacharski said rooftop parking limits remain narrower than the broader temporary period.
Why it matters: the change codifies earlier operational decisions staff say are meant to protect residents from seasonal visitor parking pressure while keeping enforcement consistent. Kacharski said the resident-parking program dates to the 1990s and that about 108 streets are designated for resident permit parking (out of roughly 600 streets citywide). He said about 3,120 of the city’s roughly 22,000 dwelling units (about 14%) participate in resident permit parking year-round.
Council debate focused on clarity for residents and logistics. Councillors asked about enforcement, towing and user outreach. Kacharski provided towing counts for October months he had available: 2024 — 237 tows; 2023 — 293; 2022 — 294 (figures cover October-designated and year-round streets for those periods). Councillors asked how the city notifies residents (email, flyers, earlier sign installation where possible) and whether the auto-renew behavior for October permits might leave nonresidents on the rolls; Kacharski said staff can review renewal lists and refine communications.
Outcome and next steps: Coun. Hapworth moved to refer ordinance 139 to the full council with a recommendation for second and final passage; the motion was seconded by Coun. Presnoski and the committee recorded four hands plus the chair in favor. The ordinance will go to the full Salem City Council for its second and final reading on the regular council calendar.
What remains unsettled: councillors asked for clearer cost and revenue accounting of the resident-permit program and whether some streets should remain year-round while others stay temporary. They also pressed for earlier signage and stronger outreach to renters and transient populations in neighborhoods near downtown events. The committee declined to amend 139 immediately and advanced the item so the full council can act on the ordinance promptly.
