Public Hearing To Be Held On Parking Proposal

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. -- The Montgomery County Council will hold a public hearing Tuesday night on a proposal to prohibit parking commercial vehicles, buses and recreational facilities on many public roadways.

The amendment sponsored by Council President Mike Knapp would ban parking of commercial vehicles, large pickup trucks and RVs on all residential streets and on roads with schools, hospitals, churches or playgrounds.

Proponents of the plan said parking large vehicles on public roads can pose a safety hazard because it limits visibility.

"We have some that park in front of our parks and baseball fields," said Bob Hydorn of the Montgomery Village Foundation. "It's a safety issue. If a child were to run out between those trucks, who knows what may happen at some point."

Montgomery Village's bylaws have always prohibited trucks from driveways and parking lots.

"What we have right now are a lot of neighborhoods where because of the size of the roads or because of the proximity to (Interstates) 270 or 495, that you're seeing an increase in tractor-trailers and people just parking their recreational vehicles there for significant periods of time," said Michael Knapp, president of the county council. "It creates a real public safety issue for those people trying to get in and out of the neighborhoods because they can't even see where they're going."

Opponents said the ban is elitist and makes it hard for residents who use large vehicles for their businesses.

"It's a war on the blue-collar worker, the independent," said Alex Moschonas who uses a truck to make produce deliveries to local restaurants. "It's just unfair to me to torture me and other people like myself. There's just no place to park, and we live here. It's like we're second-class citizens."

The bill would also affect trailers used to transport horses and equipment, including boats, motorcycles and bikes. Recreational vehicles would be allowed to park on a public road for up to 12 hours so they could be loaded or unloaded.

The District of Columbia and some neighborhoods in Fairfax and Prince William counties have similar bans.

The hearing will take place at 7:30 p.m.