Cayce considers ban on parking cars in yards. Residents have a lot to say about it
Some Cayce residents are pushing back against a proposal they fear will stop them from parking their cars where they want, and cost them money to add new parking spaces.
An online petition opposing a proposed rule against parking in front yards gathered close to 200 signatures opposing the proposal, which could come up for a vote by Cayce City Council on April 6.
The proposed ordinance would ban parking in the yard of a home, and require any car parked off the street to be on a treated parking surface, not the lawn.
Karen Fitch worries that will put too much of a burden on homeowners like her. Her corner lot in the Avenues neighborhood has a retaining wall along the street on its front yard and a line of crepe myrtles along the side yard, leaving her with little space to create an off-street parking spot. She worries adding parking spaces to existing homes will be too much of a financial burden for some Cayce residents.
“Cayce is not the suburbs; we are not and should not be (uniform),” Fitch writes in her Change.org petition. “Our city is rich in history; our homes are eclectic and charming; our residents are welcomed from all socioeconomic backgrounds.”
If approved by Cayce City Council, the ordinance would require cars in residential areas be parked in a driveway or a treated off-street parking space covered by concrete, asphalt, brick, gravel or other pervious materials. City staff proposed the change because of a large number of complaints about residents and visitors parking cars in front yards in the city, Cayce City Manager Tracy Hegler told council members.
The proposal would not affect on-street parking in residential areas, said city spokeswoman Ashley Hunter, and staff are studying ways to minimize the impact on local residents. If approved, the city will give itself six months to educate the public before the new rules go into effect.
“We want to find solutions that are non-onerous, but we have neighborhood leaders who are saying this is a problem in some areas,” Hunter said.
But Fitch said the small lot sizes of many Cayce homes leaves many of them without good parking options if more than one vehicle is involved.
“People park in the yard because it’s a necessity, not because they’re uncultured or whatever,” she said.
Some online commenters worry the proposed law could squeeze lower-income residents out of their homes, contributing to the gentrification of the area.
Fitch hopes her petition can garner 500 signatures, and she plans to go door-to-door to collect more. “There are some older retired people here on a fixed income who have been parking in the same place for 20 years and aren’t on social media,” she said.
Fitch also owns a rental property in the city where residents park on an unpaved drive, something she also worries would fall afoul of the ordinance.
A friend told her she moved from Irmo after a similar parking ordinance in that town sparked public opposition. That ordinance made an exception for visitors to a home, even if it proved to be difficult to enforce in practice. The current proposal in Cayce does not include exceptions for visitors, but Hunter emphasized Cayce does not want to be punitive in how any requirement would be enforced.
“It’s not meant to penalize someone for coming in from out of town,” Hunter said.
This story was originally published March 12, 2021 at 8:36 AM.
.jpg)