Villagers jam Town Hall for parking discussion

Between Jan. 1 and April 21, half — or 14 — of parking citations Longboat Key police wrote town-wide were for violations in the Longbeach Village.

Village residents, fed up with parking congestion in their neighborhood, jammed into the Longboat Key Town Commission’s regular workshop Monday to express their concerns to commissioners and town staff.

Commissioner Pat Zunz, whose District 5 includes the Village, asked that the commission place a discussion of parking in the north-end neighborhood on the agenda. Village residents submitted a list of parking problems, along with possible solutions, to the town in a March 19 memo. The problems they listed include:

• Roads are too narrow for emergency vehicles when cars are parked on both sides of the road;

• Residents are unable to navigate turns into and out of driveways, alleys and intersections when cars are parked on both sides of the roads;

• Drivers cannot pass when cars are parked on both sides of the road;

• Parking signs are difficult to see;

• Residents cannot park in front of their homes due to demand for parking spaces during peak season;

• Cars are parked for days at a time on streets by boaters, who often have trailers, and Jewfish Key visitors.

The problem is especially pronounced on Broadway, where Mar Vista Dockside Restaurant & Pub and Moore’s Stone Crab Restaurant are located, and on the intersecting streets of Lois and Poinsetta avenues.

Village resident Lynne Hayden made a presentation, during which she said she has witnessed Longboat Key Fire Rescue vehicles having to go around Russell Street to access Lois Avenue due to congestion.

Still, Village residents don’t believe restrictions on that street alone would combat the problem.

“I think that, without a doubt, when you start to restrict on Broadway, you push it further into the neighborhood,” said Michael Drake, president of the Longbeach Village Association. “There should be no double parking on any Village streets.”

Moore’s co-owner Alan Moore spoke at the meeting and presented several suggestions for alleviating parking congestion, one of which included restricting Broadway parking to one side of the street for anyone who is not a resident.

Village resident Samir Ragheb complained that current restrictions are not enforced, citing instances in which he called police, but the violator did not receive a citation.

“You can make the laws from now until tomorrow,” Ragheb said. “If you don’t have enforcement, you have nothing.”

Residents believe the most viable option would be to identify problem streets and blocks and restrict parking in these areas. Other options they presented including a resident parking-sticker system or a Village-wide program that would require restrictive parking signs throughout the neighborhood.

State law prohibits motorists from parking within 30 feet of intersections. Public Works staff is currently in the process of ordering and installing signs that inform drivers in the restricted area.

Parking is currently restricted on Bayside Drive and small sections of Broadway, Longboat Drive North and South and Lois Avenue. On the remainder of Broadway and the southeast side of Lois Avenue, parking is prohibited between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. In the remainder of the Village, parking is allowed at any time.

Restricted parking hours on Broadway and the small stretch of Lois Avenue were previously from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. The commission agreed in late 2012 to extend parking hours by two hours on a trial basis. In April 2013, the commission agreed to make the extension permanent.

The commission reached consensus to further discuss the suggestions residents presented at the workshop, including one-sided parking on Broadway, Lois and Poinsetta.

Contact Robin Hartill at [email protected]