(A) Establishment of parking zones in area not zoned commercial upon petition of residents. Whenever the residents of portions of the Town of Clayton not zoned commercial and constituting at least 75% of the total number of residents of a neighborhood petition the Town Manager to establish a special neighborhood parking zone having boundaries which are coextensive with the neighborhood as defined in the petition, the Town Manager shall, after the review set forth herein, establish such zone, modify the zone or deny the petition and the Chief of Police shall implement the decision of the Town Manager. A resident for purposes of this section is defined as a person over the age of 18 years who has actually lived within the neighborhood for 90 days or more. If the Town Manager's approval to establish the neighborhood parking zone as requested by the petitioners includes additional conditions, restrictions, or constitute a change to the zone proposed by the petitioners, the petitioners may, by written consent of 75% of the residents affected, agree to the additional conditions, restrictions or changes, in which case the zone shall be established in accordance with the recommendations of the Town Manager. Should 75% of the petitioners fail to accept the decision of the Town Manager, or should the town Manager deny the petition, the petitioners may, within 15 days of the decision, appeal the decision to the Town Council by delivering written notice of the appeal to the Town Clerk.
(B) Contents of petition. In order to request the establishment of a neighborhood parking zone, the residents of a neighborhood shall present a written petition to the Town Manager. The petition shall include a description of the affected area constituting the neighborhood which must be a contiguous area large enough to efficiently comprise a parking zone, a statement of the need for a restricted neighborhood parking zone, a description of the proposed terms and conditions of the zone, and shall designate a representative of the petitioners to whom all future communications should be addressed. The petition shall, as of the date of its submission to the Town Manager, have appended to it a verified list of alt residents of the affected area. The petition shall be signed by at least 75% of the residents within the affected area and shall identify, by address, the property of each signatory. The signatures need not be acknowledged. For the purposes of determining if the requisite number of signatures have been obtained, each occupied dwelling, and each occupied residential unit such as an apartment shall be considered as being entitled to at a minimum of one signature and the petitioners shall certify that best efforts have been made to contact all residents.
(C) Terms of neighborhood zones. In seeking to establish a neighborhood parking zone, the residents shall propose the periods when parking is to be restricted, the means of identifying vehicles owned by residents who may park on the street during restricted hours, the number of nonresident parking permits, if any, which may. be issued to each resident, and the desired means of identifying nonresident vehicles as having permits allowing them to park within the zone.
(D) Review of petition. In reviewing a petition for the establishment of a neighborhood parking zone, the Town Manager shall make inquiry of the police department to determine if sufficient evidence of the need to establish such a zone exists, the impact of such zone on surrounding neighborhoods, and whether the zone could reasonably be enforced. The road department shall determine whether the area can be reasonably marked as having restricted parking and whether the hours of the restrictions are reasonable. The Town Manager may contact such other departments as may be deemed appropriate in order to seek their opinions as to whether or not the zone should be created and if any additional terms or conditions are advisable.
(E) Expenses of establishing zones. The Town Manager shall have the discretion to determine whether or not the petitioners shall be required to bear, the costs of establishing such a neighborhood parking zone. In the event that such reimbursement is to be required, the Town Manager may consider the cost of installation of all signage, and the cost of the means of identifying vehicles as being permitted to park within the zone. The Town Manager may require the petitioners to make satisfactory arrangements for such reimbursement prior to the establishment of the zone and may require the residents to pay a reasonable fee, not to exceed $3 per permit, to reimburse the town for the actual costs of processing and issuing each vehicular permit. Lost permits may be replaced only by payment of a fee not to exceed $10.
(F) Illegal parking within zones. It shall be a violation of this division to park on the street in a neighborhood parking zone without displaying the appropriate temporary or permanent permit to park therein. It shall be an affirmative defense to the violation of this division that the vehicle is owned by a resident of the neighborhood and that a permit has been obtained for that vehicle within 5 days of that date of violation.
(G) Establishment of zone upon petition by town. In the event that any department or division of the town deems it advisable to establish a neighborhood parking zone without the initiation of a petition by (he residents of the affected area, a petition may be filed with Town Manager. The petition shall contain all of the information required by division (A) with the exception of the requirement of the residents' signature.
(H) Administration. The administration of all neighborhood parking zones shall be the responsibility of the Town Manager or the Manager's designee. As used herein, the term ADMINISTRATION includes the issuance and revocation of permits, the establishment and dissolution of neighborhood parking zones, and the installation of appropriate signs. The Chief of Police or the Chief’s designee is responsible for the enforcement of the regulations within each zone.
(I) Modification or dissolution of zone. A neighborhood parking zone may be modified or dissolved upon petition of the residents or upon petition of the town. In either event, the procedures set forth in this division shall apply.
(J) Power Retained by Board of Trustees. Nothing in this chapter shall restrict the power of the Board of Trustees to regulate parking within the Town of Clayton on or by any other lawful means.
(Ord. 684, passed 9-14-2011) Penalty, see § 73.99