The Columbus Board of Public Works and Safety unanimously voted to back a recommendation by City Engineer Andrew Beckort to install no parking signs on Tipton Lane.
The signs will show parking is prohibited along the north side of Tipton Lane from Sycamore Street to Home Avenue.
During a Columbus Plan Commission meeting on June 12, as members considered changing the use of North Christian Church to a branch campus of the Bartholomew County Public Library, neighbors had expressed concern about parking in the area.
“I have received a request from residents along Tipton Lane to consider the installation of parking restrictions on (the) north side of Tipton Lane from Sycamore Street to Home Avenue,” Beckort wrote in a memo to the board. “They have cited traffic problems with cars parked on both sides of the street making Tipton Lane a single lane roadway.”
Beckort said he went to check out the area and made the following observations:
- The current speed limit is 30 mph but not posted.
- Tipton Lane is 26 feet wide.
- Parking is prohibited on both sides of Tipton Lane from Home Avenue to 165 feet west of the intersection of Home Avenue.
- Parking is allowed along both sides for the remainder of that section of Tipton Lane.
- Parking from large events in the vicinity overflows onto Tipton Lane, creating congestion.
Part of the municipal code allows the city engineer to put up signs indicating no parking on one side of a street when the width of that particular roadway doesn’t exceed 30 feet, as is the case with Tipton Lane.
“We’re proposing no parking on the north side of the street, which would be the North Christian Church side,” Beckort told the board.
In response to a question from Mayor Mary Ferdon about who is parking in the area, Beckort said it’s primarily overflow from St. Bartholomew Catholic Church and St. Bartholomew School, but also from North Christian Church when events have been held there.
Ferdon said she was concerned about the appearance of the signs, especially considering they would be be facing those looking at the scenic grounds. Beckort indicated they would plan to use signs like those on the People Trail with black posts and work with the city traffic department to complete the installation.
During the plan commission meeting last month, several neighbors said that parking restrictions are rarely, if ever enforced in the area. Board member Melanie Henderson wondered if that would still be the case and Police Chief Steve Norman, who was at the meeting, said they would enforce the restrictions.
Board members also agreed that it would be prudent for the city to inform representatives from St. Bartholomew to make sure congregants and student families are aware of the parking restrictions.
