Washington council looks to limit parking on two streets

WASHINGTON - The Washington City Council is researching parking on North Iowa and North Marion avenues.

After changing the parking regulation on South Avenue B, a resident asked Council member Danielle Pettit-Majewski to review additional streets in town. The concern was related to North Iowa and North Marion avenue between West Fifth and West 8th streets.

Pettit-Majewski was sent a picture of the congestion and expressed concern about plowing in the wintertime.

The council discused the issue in a workshop during its Dec. 1 meeting. This parking issue was previously discussed in 2018, and Mayor Jaron Rosien said the council at the time was unable to find a reasonable solution. This time around, Police Chief Jim Lester had a suggestion.

Lester said the majority of congestion is on the 500 block on both streets.

He suggested no parking for the first 120 feet on the west side of the road to clear room to the stop sign. He also suggested no parking for the first 20 to 60 feet on the east side.

'It would stop some of the bottlenecking we have,” Lester said.

Pettit-Majewski said it sounds like a workable solution and said it could be a possible solution for other streets in the area.

Councilmember Fran Stigers asked why Lester chose 60 feet for the east side.

On North Iowa Avenue, there are two apartment complexes where residents park in the street. Having no parking for 60 feet clears up the intersection without interfering with the parking, Lester said.

The council instructed Lester to draft an ordinance for the change and produce a map for a visual reference.