Cape City Council to vote on restricting parking near campus today

Parking spaces near Southeast Missouri State University are likely to start disappearing soon.

In response to complaints from neighbors that students take up too many spots, the Cape Girardeau City Council is poised to limit and restrict daytime parking in the Boulevard Local Historic District.

The council is expected to vote tonight on the first reading of an ordinance that prohibits weekday parking from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on both sides of West End Boulevard and other nearby streets from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. through the week.

The vote is the culmination of years of meetings by city-appointed parking task forces and recent meetings with residents.

"It's kind of a test," Mayor Harry Rediger said Sunday. "We'll see how it goes and then take another look at it. We're open to change if the situation dictates that in the future. I think, personally, that this is the best possible solution to the issue for the residents at this point in time."

The ordinance restricts parking on several streets:

• Park Avenue, both sides, from Normal Avenue to Broadway, no parking from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Normal Avenue, both sides, from West End Boulevard to Henderson Avenue, no parking from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• West End Boulevard, both sides, from Normal Avenue to Broadway, no parking from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Highland Drive, both sides, from West End Boulevard to Rockwood Drive, no parking from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

At least some residents seemed pleased with the result.

"I think it's great," said Mike Sheehan, an organizer of the district. "I think it's beneficial, especially from a safety standpoint."

The streets are too narrow for so much parking, he said, which makes it difficult for public safety vehicles to get through, he said.

Residents had also complained that college students would sometimes leave their cars parked in spots for days, blocking some from parking in front of their homes.

"It looks like it will do just what we hoped it would," Sheehan said.

The ordinance is hoped to be completed before classes start later this month. If the ordinance, which requires a second vote in two weeks, isn't approved in time, then city manager Scott Meyer has said he is authorized to restrict parking for a limited time until the ordinance goes into effect 10 days after it is given final approval.

"We wanted to listen to the residents and be responsible," Meyer said. "We think it will be effective to try and address some of their problems."

While some residents had said that their first preference was a voucher system that would allow only residents -- and not students -- to park along those streets, Rediger said he was never in favor of that. He said that system would have been hard to manage.

"How many vouchers? For who, for what? How do they get spread around?" he asked. "It would take more enforcement dollars. To me, it's just not a good solution."

Not that he is ready to disregard that idea altogether, he said.

"Maybe if this doesn't work at all, maybe we come back and look at that," Rediger said. "But I think this is the thing to try first."

smoyers@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

401 Independence St., Cape Girardeau, MO