A limit on the number of times vehicles may be parked overnight on Clarendon Hills streets likely will take effect Jan. 1.
Parking on village streets is prohibited from 2-6 a.m., but an unlimited number of waivers has been available online or by calling the Police Department each night a vehicle is going to be parked on the street overnight.
The Village Board gave preliminary approval Monday to a village code amendment that would limit residents and non-residents to seven waivers in a six-month period, running January to June and July to December. Requests beyond seven days will need to be approved by the chief of police or his designee.
The amendments will be up for a final vote at the board meeting at 7 p.m. Dec. 19 at Village Hall, 1 N. Prospect. If approved, Village manager Kevin Barr said the new rules likely would take effect Jan. 1.
The Village Board initially discussed overnight parking restrictions in November after police chief Boyd Farmer said some residents of McDaniels Circle, off the 400 block of Park Avenue, were calling in nightly for permission to park on Park.
“The McDaniels residents are using Park Avenue overnight in order to avoid paying extra to park in their lot,” Farmer said. “This trend could become a larger problem with future multifamily developments soon to be built downtown.”
Farmer said the overnight parking protocol had worked well, as residents typically would call in requests when needed due to driveway work, overnight guests or a broken down vehicle. He said $25 parking tickets could be issued for vehicles exceeding the allowed number of overnight parking waivers.
“A resident calling in to use the street every night was not a problem, until now,” he said.
Before recommending the limit, police checked with nearby towns. It was found that Westmont allows seven passes within a six-month period, Oak Brook allows three requests within a 30-day period, and Hinsdale has no total limits, although it does restrict overnight parking to no more than three consecutive nights.
“The restrictions for overnight parking have been a great crime prevention tool, allowing officers and residents to observe suspicious vehicles,” Farmer said.
Farmer said the number of overnight parking notifications from residents varies greatly, but typically is 5-10 each night.
