Broomfield City Council approved on Tuesday new parking permit rules and an expansion of the permit-only area.
The municipal code amendments will expand permit-only parking to include a portion of the Broomfield Heights subdivision — the area adjacent to the Broomfield Town Square project. The amendments were proposed after residents expressed concern during community meetings about parking overflow from the new development.
The city and county currently only allows homeowners to request permit-only parking for their block if they live within a quarter of a mile of a school.
Permit-only parking restrictions for approved blocks are currently in effect from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Aug. 15 to June 15, except for Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. Under the new rule changes, those date and time restrictions will be removed to allow more flexibility to protect resident parking, said Anna Bertanzetti, planning director of community development with the city and county.
Parking restrictions instead will be enacted through policy tailored to specific neighborhoods, she told City Council.
“The ordinance will also add an opportunity for guests of the residents — in these areas that are permit-only parking — to be eligible for temporary permits, as needed, which would be reviewed by the city and county traffic engineer,” Bertanzetti said. “The current code only allows for temporary permits for contractors.”
The traffic engineer will work with homeowners to decide whether specific restrictions are needed, she explained.
The permit-only parking has expanded to around 280 properties, Bertanzetti said.
“It’s important to note that this ordinance itself does not designate this area as permit-only parking — property owners would need to request this designation, and that request could be received on a block-by-block basis, it does not need to be the entire area,” she told City Council.
“We wouldn’t expect the designation to be requested for the Broomfield Town Square area until construction is complete and we start to see occupancy, and then we’ll be able to determine the peak hours where there could potentially be impact.”
Once they are established, a list of the areas with date and time restrictions will be posted on the city and county’s website, Bertanzetti said.
City Council approved the proposed ordinance on first reading Oct. 11.
