The Sebastopol City Council is expected to give the final say on an ordinance spelling out the rules for where recreational vehicles can park at the special city council meeting Wednesday, Feb. 23.
The council will also discuss direction to staff on recruitment for multiple positions on boards, commissions and committees that have received few applications. The agenda and Zoom information for the 6 p.m. virtual meeting is available here.
Parking ordinance could tell RVs to keep on rolling
Following up a January decision to introduce an ordinance restricting RV parking, the council will further discuss and potentially adopt a recreational vehicle parking ordinance and amend the Sebastopol Municipal Code, prepared by staff as requested months ago at the Nov. 30 special meeting about the RV Safe Parking Village.
Specifically, the staff report states the city council had asked staff to put together RV parking regulations “in residential, commercial and industrial zoned areas of the City along with the option for permitted short-term stay exceptions in residential zoned areas of the City.”
The council agreed to attend to parking issues on Morris Street where RVs still line the sidewalk as shelter for residents who are otherwise homeless. The RV Safe Parking Village has opened since then to accept about 18 former Morris Street neighbors.
Chapter 10.76, the city ordinance coming before the council, outlaws these things:
1. Parking or leaving a recreational vehicle standing on any public street zoned residential at any time.
2. Parking or leaving a recreational vehicle on a public street zoned commercial, industrial, or community facility any time between 7:30 a.m. and 10 p.m.
3. Parking or leaving a recreational vehicle in any city-owned parking lot unless one is doing “city-related business during business hours at the location for which the parking lot is designated.”
4. Parking or leaving a recreational vehicle standing under 30 feet from any street corner. Following this rule should allow other drivers to survey the area properly.
There are exceptions. Notably, homeowners, tenants and out-of-town visitors could still park or leave standing an RV on any public street zoned residential to load or unload their vehicle as long as the RV is back on the road in 72 hours, or three days. An RV that breaks down would be able to stay put for repairs for up to 48 hours.
Per the resolution, the ordinance would be in effect as of March 3 and violations are to count as infractions that may lead to “citation, towing or both.” The staff report notes city workers said at the Jan. 18 city council meeting that they would bring forth a future agenda item “to discuss personnel and material costs.”
Calling locals to engage in city government
Next, city staff are seeking guidance as they address the empty seats and openings on commissions, boards and committees as part of Sebastopol’s broader mission to get local citizens to take a more active role in the council’s decision-making process, according to the staff report.
There are openings and vacancies to be filled on the Design Review Board, the Zero Waste Committee, the Climate Action Committee and the City Planning Commission. The city also needs a citizen liaison to the Climate Action Advisory Committee for the Sonoma County Transportation Authority and Regional Climate Protection Authority to give “expert citizen input on implementation of the Climate Action Initiatives.”
City staff’s own recommendations are for direction to come back with an agenda item to interview applicants or think about reappointing two applicants and recruit for the third empty seat on the Design Review Board and hold off on the Zero Waste and Climate Action Committees until those groups and staff can talk about combining them or what they’ll look like going forward.
The staff report says further that staff recommend direction to recruit for the citizen liaison position and for the openings on the planning commission. Otherwise, city personnel are advising that the council instruct them to schedule talks regarding the planning commission’s size on a future agenda.
From there, staff also plan to present updates to the council about other vacancies soon to come into effect so they can receive direction to recruit.
