Politics & Government
Is Milford's Winter Parking Ban Too Restrictive?
Selectmen continue to eye easing the parking ban if, or when, winter storms are few.
Proposed changes to Milford's winter parking ban would limit the parking restrictions to stormy nights only.
Under the current ordinance, vehicles are always prohibited from parking on public streets from 1 a.m. to 6 a.m. from Nov. 15 to April 15, no matter what the weather looks like.
Selectmen are considering changes that would restrict parking for those same hours, but only during or directly after significant winter storms.
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"Our discussion over the past few meetings has been that there were years like this last year where there was very little snow and really no reason to prohibit parking in those areas," Chairman Gary Daniels said at Monday's meeting.
Towns officials would decide whether or not to put the ban in place by 4 p.m. on a given day, at which point a light on the Milford Town Hall would be illuminated to notify residents. Town Administrator Guy Scaife said details about the new light are forthcoming.
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Town staff would also update the town's website with a notice about the ban and send out electronic messages through the Nixle alert service. Milford police and fire alerts are issued to cell phones and email addresses registered at Nixle.com.
The ban could remain in place for several days, but would only prohibit parking from 1 a.m. to 6 a.m. on affected days, selectmen said.
Selectman Kathy Bauer said she was concerned that the details of the ban could be confusing for residents and require more effort to find out if the ban is in place.
"I know there will be some flack here, so I'm just telling people we're putting this in and we hope it works and if it doesn't, a future board will look at it," Bauer said Monday.
Scaife was optimistic that the ban would make things easier for residents in the end.
"When you think of the benefit to the public, the minuscule effort to determine whether it's in place or not seems to me so small," he said.
The new winter parking ban will be up for approval at the next Board of Selectmen meeting.
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