By jane waterhouse
Staff Writer
FARRAH MAFFAI Borough police are planning to crack down on violators of a no-parking ordinance near Sickles School on Fair Haven Road.
FAIR HAVEN — A parking ordinance that some people never knew existed and others thought didn’t pertain to them came under fire when a motion to amend it was brought before the Borough Council Aug. 26.
The ordinance, which prohibits parking on the west side of Fair Haven Road between River and Ridge roads, includes an area on Willow Street that parents have used to drop off and pick up children at Sickles School.
The proposed amendment would allow parking from the southern crosswalk at the junction of Willow Street to the junction of Third Street from 8-8:30 a.m. and 2:30-3:30 p.m.
"It’s basically a question of legalizing something that’s been happening for years," said Borough Clerk Bruce Hilling.
"By enforcing the ordinance, it would be an extreme hardship on the moms and dads who have been dropping their kids off for years, especially during inclement weather," Hilling said.
"You can put up all the signs you want," said Mayor William E. Leonard, "but in bad weather, parents are still going to tell their kids, ‘I’ll pick you up on Fair Haven Road.’ "
"I’m in opposition to this amendment on the grounds that it will negatively affect the safety of the children, the drivers and the residents," Lawrence Quigley of Fair Haven Road said at the public hearing.
Quigley described the thoroughfare as "narrow" and "hazardous" — conditions that he said were exacerbated by a steady flow of traffic and children walking to school and riding bicycles.
"The illegal area accommodates only seven or eight parked cars — especially since the ones who use it generally drive those large SUVs," Quigley said. "I believe the safety of the many should be considered over the convenience of the few."
Peter Kusulas of Riverlawn Drive said he was against posting allowable times for parking, saying that would only add confusion to an already dangerous stretch of road.
"It should be legal either all the time or none of the time," he said.
Councilman Thomas Gilmour, who raised an objection when the amendment was first introduced, reiterated his misgivings, saying that parked cars on Fair Haven Road only worsened a bad situation.
When Councilman Garrett Bess asked Police Chief Richard Towler what he would recommend, Towler said, "My recommendation? Walk to school."
Applause broke out in the room.
Councilman Richard Magovern suggested that the problem began when the borough deviated from the concept of neighborhood schools.
"To ask a kindergartner to walk all the way from Harvard or Cambridge isn’t fair," he said.
After members of the public had voiced their opinions, the board voted unanimously against the amendment.
Chief Towler told the council the "No Parking" signs would go up immediately.
"But no matter what," he said, "it’s going to be a chaotic situation over there."