SOUTH GATE : Parking Is Such Street Sorrow

Too many cars, too little space.

Stating the problem is simple, but solving it has become a touchy issue that has been on the agenda at City Hall for years.

For the second time in as many years, the City Council voted 3 to 2 in September to prohibit overnight parking on city streets except by permit. A public hearing is scheduled Tuesday at the Sports Center to determine permit fees.

Two years ago, the City Council passed a similar ordinance, setting the permit fee at $65, but rescinded the measure after angry residents charged that the parking policy would discriminate against large families and that the fee would be a hardship for poor residents.

If the new plan takes effect in January, the city would charge a proposed fee of $25 for each car parked on the street. A typical single-family home with a two-car garage and a driveway has three on-site parking spaces, according to city officials.

If a household can demonstrate that those spots are occupied by vehicles, they’ll be issued permits to park additional vehicles on the street, said James A. Biery, the city’s director of Public Works.

Under the proposal, individuals who are disabled would be allowed to park without permits and senior citizens would receive free permits.

“The situation is that the width of our streets is 30 feet,” Biery said, “And when you park them solid it’s difficult for people who live there and emergency services to get through.”

The streets are “literally packed with cars,” according to a staff report.

There are about 48,000 registered vehicles in the city of 90,000. That’s 6,000 vehicles more than in 1991, the last time restrictions were considered.

Two or more families now live in single homes and some residents have converted garages into living areas, legally or illegally, Biery said.

Critics of the plan say residents should be allowed to park on public streets for free and argue that the city is using a permit program to control overcrowded housing conditions, a problem that should be addressed in other ways.

The council has the option to rescind the overnight-parking prohibition and implement alternatives such as creating one-way streets or alternate side parking, Biery said.

The public hearing is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. in the Sports Center at 9520 Hildreth Ave.