Mac council takes first step to decrease car and RV campers on city streets
McMinnville, March 27 2018
An ordinance which will allow the city of McMinnville to get tougher on car and RV campers passed muster last night (tuesday) on first reading. The ordinance removes some of the loop holes that have allowed a handful of campers to take up residence on city streets such as Doran Drive. Several people signed up to speak on the issue last night, but council did not give them a chance. Instead another public comment period will come up April 10th when the ordinance will get a second reading and possible adoption.
Ordinance 5049 removes several provisions that have prevented police from taking tougher enforcement action and have raised the ire of several Doran Drive residents who warn their neighborhoods safety and value is decreasing due to the defacto RV camp set up on their street. The new ordinance will allow police to write a ticket after only 24 hours of being parked on a city street and remove the provision that allows the clock to re-start if the RV has been moved 300 feet.
Mac Councilors have talked about what the fine structure should look like. Currently it’s 45 dollars to be cited for an abandoned or improperly parked vehicle. Councilor Adam Garvin would like to say that raised to a hundred dollars as more of an encouragement to obey the law. Councilors say they are not in a hurry to have someone’s home towed, but that something has to be done to end to increasing number of older RV’s setting up residence on at least two of McMinnville’s streets. Booting or towing vehicles may come as another ordinance created after all of Mac’s parking ordinances are examined, so as to not single out one particular type of offender.
I appreciate the problem of people living in vehicles parked on public streets. Since there is moving traffic perhaps no one should stay overnight in a vehicle parked on a street. If children want to do a sleepover party in a RV, it can’t be parked on the street. I understand the logic of such a law.
That being said, limiting a homeowner from parking his RV in front of his home to 24 hours is unfair. A 72 hour limit in this situation is fair. I’m not saying he should be able to use it as a guest home for company. The RV owner needs more than 24 hours to prepare the RV for return to storage. This is especially true when both adults return to work on Monday after a RV trip