The Public Safety and Traffic Safety Committee discussed commercial vehicle parking on residential streets during its August 14 meeting.
Police Chief and acting city manager Jason Ogden said the city’s municipal code states that heavy trucks are prohibited on all roads except designated truck routes, but there are exceptions: public and emergency vehicles, detours, special purposes such as picking up or delivering goods, and unloaded trucks traveling to and from the driver’s residence.
“So if you’re not driving, you can easily park in a residential area,” Ogden said.
The issue was on the agenda after committee member Vince Adams raised concerns during the July meeting that logging trucks take up too much space and create unsafe driving conditions in residential areas. In July, he said drivers may not be able to see cross traffic, pedestrians or animals until it is too late.
Adams was not present at the August meeting and no further questions or concerns were raised.
The next item on the agenda was crosswalks. Chairman Frank Gallagher took the initiative and said some crosswalks needed to be repainted or made more visible to motorists. Committee member Bud Mather mentioned the crosswalk near 2nd Avenue on Holley Road, and Ogden said public works staff could go around and identify other areas where crosswalks needed to be repainted.
Miscellaneous:
- City Councilman Josh Thorstad told Ogden that when public works employees tried to put up stop signs at 47th Avenue and Long Street, “they were yelled at and had things thrown at them,” so the work was not completed. Ogden said he would talk to the public works department.
- Committee member Michael Hildebrand said he would like to revisit the possibility of installing stop signs at 12th Avenue and Elm Street because east-west traffic is difficult to see on 12th Avenue.
- A resident of Ulex Street complained about a driver who, in his opinion, continues to drive too fast through the area and thereby endangers children.
