EDITORIAL: City parking ban would make plowing easier

Hutchinson, a city known for its quick and thorough snow removal, is considering a seasonal parking ban to go into effect starting at 2 a.m. Monday, Dec. 1. The ban would enable city crews to remove snow more efficiently, which it normally does overnight.

Those who live in neighborhoods where parking is severely limited need not despair. John Olson, the city’s public works director, told us Tuesday that if the ban is approved, the city would work with you and your neighbors during the next several weeks to figure something out. What could be better?

We applaud the City Council for considering this ordinance. Mr. Olson told us that an overnight winter parking ban has been discussed at council or staff meetings during every one of the 12 years he’s been in Hutchinson.

This year is different. Because of budget cuts and staff reductions, the city doesn’t have plow operators to return to the streets a second time to plow where parked cars made the job impossible the day before. Something needs to change.

Even without the ban, plow operators have always found vehicles left unattended on streets to be a nuisance, and some are towed. Yet Hutchinson has tolerated them, for the most part. That would end if this ordinance is adopted.

Under the ban, the owner of a vehicle parked overnight on any city street could be cited and the vehicle could be towed. The owner would be responsible for paying the ticket, the towing and the vehicle’s storage at an impound lot.

How much might that be? We’re not sure, but it probably would be far less than what it costs in Chicago, where a tow alone starts at $150, a ticket is $50, and the storage starts at $10 a day. “I don’t think we’re talking about anything like that,” Mr. Olson told us on Tuesday.
We’re also heartened to know that the city would work with residents of neighborhoods where off-street parking is limited. The city understands everyone doesn’t have a two- or three-car garage with a long driveway.

Mr. Olson gave the council a good amount of research about the proposed ordinance. He looked at parking restrictions in 25 Minnesota cities roughly the size of Hutchinson, with populations ranging from 10,000 to 25,000. “Hutchinson is the most permissive, by far, when it comes to parking restrictions,” he said.

The cities’ restrictions fell into three categories:

< One-third of cities allow no on-street parking during the winter.

< One-third declare 48- or 72-hour snow emergencies, and require vehicles stay off the streets until the emergency ends.

< Slightly less than one-third allow no overnight, on-street winter parking, or ban parking until the street has been plowed curb to curb. In those cities, a two-inch snowfall usually triggers the restrictions.

Hutchinson was the only city with almost no restrictions, except in the downtown area.

We think most residents would like the new policy. Our unscientific reader poll conducted at hutchinsonleader.com last winter showed that 76 percent of the poll’s 189 respondents believe something should happen to prevent parking on city streets after a snowfall. Of that 76 percent, 21 percent said vehicle owners should be ticketed, 41 percent said owners should be ticketed and cars should be towed, and 14 percent said no parking should be allowed at all on residential streets during the winter.

Of all possible options, we think Mr. Olson’s idea is a solid one. He said he recommended it to the council because it’s simple and clear. And it gets the plowing job done for the least amount of taxpayer money.

What will residents think of it?

“Everyone might not agree with it,” he said, “but they certainly would understand it.”

(Terry Davis is a Hutchinson Leader staff writer. E-mail him at davis@hutchinsonleader.com.)