HomeMy WebLinkAboutA002 - Email from Ann Krapfl dated July 9, 2018 McKinley Drive parking ordinance
Krapfl, Anne D [U REQ to: mgansen@city.ames.ia.us 07/09/2018 12:08 PM
Cc: "dvoss@city.ames.ia.us"
Hello Mark,
Thank you for your July 3 letter to the property owners along McKinley Drive.
I agree with the first part of the proposed parking ordinance(regarding parking between Hayes and McKinley Cir.).During the school year,there are numerous
parents who drop off their children at the north playground entrance to Fellows School.Most of the congestion I experience as I'm trying to leave the neighborhood
is in the block between Van Buren and McKinley Cir.
I'm not convinced the second part of the proposal(regarding one-side parking between McKinley Cir and Northwestern)is necessary,unless the city generally is
moving toward banning parking on one side of all residential streets.Otherwise,it feels like a solution to a"problem"that doesn't exist,due to our distance from the
school.I suspect our north side neighbors will resent children and visitors of south side residents parking at"their"curb.We live on the south side of the street.
There are only 2-3 evenings a year when all-school events at Fellows fill up our neighborhood's streets with cars—and that's tolerable,in my opinion.
However,the second part of the proposed ordinance WOULD take care of one long-term parking issue on our street:Residents on Northwestern Drive who own
multiple(as many as 6!)vehicles but don't want to park/store more than 1-2 in their driveway,so they use the east end of McKinley Drive as their parking lot,
unfortunately on both sides of the road.Particularly in the winter when the snowplows plow around two sets of parked vehicles,this leaves a single traffic lane on
McKinley Dr.Toss in a few Fellows parents,neighborhood residents heading to work,a school bus and Fellows students walking to school and it's a hazardous corner.
Even when the snow ordinance is in place,the Northwestern neighbors'solution isn't to get more cars into the driveway;it's to get cars off Northwestern(as
required)and onto McKinley.
Perhaps there's a better way to solve this dilemma—stricter enforcement of the city's 48-hour rule,for example—though I do think our police officers have better
ways to serve the broader community!
Thank you again for asking for resident input.
Anne Krapfl
homeowner at 1246 McKinley Dr.
adkrapfl@gmail.com