Council introduces Zone 12 residential permit-parking ordinance, approves amendment narrowing Rawlinson segment

The West Orange Township Council on Aug. 11 introduced on first reading Ordinance 29-87-26 to establish Residential Permit Parking Zone 12 covering several short streets and portions of Rawlinson/Rollinson. Council members debated the ordinance’s geographic bounds before approving an amendment that adds Rawlinson from Mitchell Street to Northfield Avenue and advancing the ordinance on first reading.

The ordinance as introduced would amend chapter 7 (traffic) of the township code to create permit zone number 12 for Riggs Place, Pielott/Pilar Place, Swain Place, Quimby Place and a stretch of Rawlinson Street described in the draft. After public comment raised concerns about which blocks were included, the council considered a motion to remove Rawlinson from the draft but then passed a separate amendment to include only the section from Mitchell to Northfield.

Director Carballo told the council staff had surveyed portions of the affected streets and planned to re-send surveys for the other Rawlinson segments; she said administrative tasks (printing permits, ordering and installing signs, police input) and notification needs were factors in the implementation schedule. "We determined that there's 16 school days for Seton Hall in September," a staff member said when describing calendar constraints that led staff to recommend an October 1 implementation window rather than Sept. 1.

The clerk recorded the roll-call votes after the amendment and the first-reading motion; the chair announced that both the amendment and the ordinance on first reading carried. The council set the ordinance for further consideration at the next reading, allowing additional public input and technical corrections to the ordinance text.

The ordinance was introduced on first reading with the amendment; the council also directed staff to continue outreach and finalize survey results before the next reading.