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Council holds public hearing on parking ordinance changes to ban sidewalk parking and clarify citations
Summary
At a May 26 public hearing the Martinsville Common Council reviewed Ordinance 2026-1915 to amend Chapter 78 (vehicle stopping, standing and parking). Deputies proposed a city ticket book to simplify citations, reduce fines compared with state tickets, and target sidewalk and against-the-flow parking to improve pedestrian safety; second reading set for June 8.
The Martinsville Common Council on May 26 held a public hearing on Ordinance 2026-1915, a proposed amendment to Chapter 78 of the municipal code that would add a section to clarify how city parking- and traffic-related ordinance violations are cited and paid.
Deputy Police Chief Brown told the council the city prepared a new ticket book to replace an “outdated” citation process and to keep more revenue local. He said the change would make it easier for officers to issue citations without a computer and would reduce the financial burden on residents by offering lower city ordinance fines versus existing state-level tickets. “If we do a city ordinance violation, it's cheaper for the individual receiving it,” Brown said.
The presentation singled out two enforcement priorities: prohibiting vehicles from parking on sidewalks and banning parking against the flow of traffic. Brown said vehicles on sidewalks create safety hazards by forcing pedestrians into the road and can cause permanent damage to newly installed concrete sidewalks. “Vehicles parking on sidewalks creates a safety hazard,” he said.
Council members asked about how the ticket book would handle specific cases — including golf carts and e-bikes — and whether citations for emergency responses would be exempt. Brown and City Counsel Dale Coffey said the city’s traffic code and state provisions remain in effect, that ticket forms will include discrete codes to identify golf-cart or bicycle violations, and that responses by emergency vehicles would not be subject to these ordinances during a state of emergency or an active emergency response.
Coffey described the item as the first reading; unless council suspends rules for unanimous consent, the ordinance will return for a second reading and a formal vote at the June 8 meeting. No public comments were offered during the hearing.
The council was asked to consider also adding explicit sidewalk language to the new section; Coffey noted a separate traffic section already addresses sidewalk parking but acknowledged the draft could be clarified to reflect that enforcement priority.
Next steps: the ordinance remains at first reading and will appear on the June 8 council agenda for second reading and consideration.
