[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the City of College Park 9-13-1978 as Res. No. 78-R-3. Section 151-4A, C and E amended at time of adoption of Code; see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I. Other amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Fees and penalties — See Ch. 110.
Vehicles and traffic — See Ch. 184.
Under the provisions of § 184-9, Permit parking in restricted residential areas, of the Code of the City of College Park, the following rules and regulations are promulgated:
A. 
A request for permit parking may be initiated by the Mayor and Council or by petition from one or more residents.
B. 
Permit parking requests must be for a minimum area of both sides of a street one standard city block in length or the equivalent.
A. 
The petition must clearly state:
(1) 
Why permit parking is considered necessary.
(2) 
The limits of the desired permit parking area.
(3) 
The desired days and times that permit parking would be in force.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection A(4), which provided that the petition must state that the parking requirements may carry a charge that will reimburse the City for all or part of the costs of the necessary materials and the administration of the program, was repealed 6-9-2020 by Ord. No. 20-O-08.
B. 
Petitions shall be signed by one person, usually the head of the household, representing one single-family residence or by the owner or his/her agent representing all of his/her tenants in a multifamily structure. The address of each petitioner must be shown.
C. 
The petitioners, each representing one single-family residence in the affected area, must represent two-thirds (2/3) of the single-family dwelling units in the affected area.
A. 
Upon determination that the request for permit parking satisfies all of the above elements, the Council will conduct a public hearing at some convenient place and time which will be announced in the monthly Municipal Scene or by some other method which will notify all affected citizens.
B. 
Following a public hearing, the City Council, in the best interests of the city, may accept, modify or reject the permit parking request.
C. 
Guidelines for evaluating the public hearing. The following criteria are intended to guide the Mayor and Council in determining whether a request for permit parking permits is reasonable and justified. These shall not be considered exclusive criteria:
[Added 9-10-1991 by Ord. No. 91-O-22]
(1) 
The street proposed for permit parking has an identified parking problem which cannot be alleviated in any other way than by permit parking. Such a problem can be identified through a combination of resident complaints, parking enforcement surveillance and ticketing practices, accident statistics and the history or previous efforts to control parking on the street.
(2) 
The street has a higher volume of nonresidential parking than would normally be expected.
(3) 
Parking will not impede the delivery of fire and medical emergency services to residents on the street.
(4) 
The installation of parking shall be assessed for its potential impact on public transportation.
(5) 
The potential impact of parking on adjacent neighborhoods shall be assessed.
(6) 
Parking will not disturb traffic flow on the street and in the neighborhood.
(7) 
The character of the neighborhood will not be diminished.
[Amended 6-11-1985 by Res. No. 85-R-5; 9-10-1991 by Ord. No. 91-O-22; 12-10-1991 by Ord. No. 91-O-24; 8-10-1993 by Ord. No. 93-O-5]
A. 
If permit parking is ordered by the City Council, the City staff will prepare a plan for the issuance of parking permits for the specific area; such plan, subject to approval by resolution of the Mayor and Council, will include, among other things, the number of permits to be distributed and the method of permit allocation. The City staff will then order an appropriate number of permits, which will be issued upon application as required. Among other factors to be considered in devising a permit parking plan and permit allocation for a given area are the number of legitimate on-street parking spaces available; the amount of off-street parking available for the various types of residential structures; the residential or commercial character of certain blocks or parts thereof; the proximity of Metro and MARC stations and other public use facilities to the area and the likely impact of such facilities on parking in the area; the anticipated time period of parking congestion; and population density and vehicle density of the area. In devising the plan, input may be sought from neighborhood/community civic organizations or groups and University of Maryland fraternity and/or sorority councils, as well as other members of the community and City.
[Amended 6-9-2020 by Ord. No. 20-O-08]
B. 
For so long as physical permits are issued, replacement permits may be issued upon satisfactory proof of loss or damage.
[Amended 6-9-2020 by Ord. No. 20-O-08]
C. 
For so long as physical permits are issued, permits will be placed inside of each vehicle so as to be clearly visible through the windshield.
[Amended 6-9-2020 by Ord. No. 20-O-08]
D. 
Permits will be valid for that period of time authorized by the City Council and must be renewed annually or biannually, as appropriate, or such other amount as set by Council. Permits in Zone 6 shall also be offered on a voluntary basis for any persons who prefer a permit valid for six months, which may also be renewed as set out herein.
[Amended 12-10-2003 by Ord. No. 03-O-14; 8-14-2007 by Ord. No. 07-O-15; 6-9-2020 by Ord. No. 20-O-08]
E. 
Permits will be valid only in the area for which they are issued.
F. 
Any permit parking plan implemented prior to the time of passage of Ordinance 93-O-5 shall remain in effect until revised or rescinded in accordance with this section.
[Amended 9-10-1991 by Ord. No. 91-O-22; 8-9-1994 by Ord. No. 94-O-8]
After a twelve-month period of operation, the City Council will accept petitions, signed by representatives of over 50% of participating households, for withdrawal of permit parking. The procedures of §§ 151-2 and 151-3 will be followed. Upon a determination by the City Council that it is no longer necessary for a designated area to have permit parking, the City Council may at any time initiate its own action to withdraw permit parking in that area, without the necessity of following the procedures of §§ 151-2 and 151-3.
[Added 8-9-1994 by Ord. No. 94-O-8; amended 6-9-2020 by Ord. No. 20-O-08]
Upon action by the City Council withdrawing permit parking in a designated area, written notice of such action shall be sent to each holder of a parking permit in that area.