By Keith Knepp
Staff Writer

Two Milford business owners voiced their complaints about early morning downtown parking restrictions during Monday night’s town council meeting.

Katie Cockrill of Lizard’s Bar and Grill and Kerry Hartman of the Turf Bar spoke during the public forum portion of the meeting to argue the current restrictions were detrimental because they did not coincide with their businesses hours. Currently, no parking is allowed on downtown streets between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m., although the bars remain open until 3:30 a.m. weekends and employees often do not leave until after 4 a.m.

Milford Town Marshal Rich Miotto noted his department traditionally has not ticketed cars until at least 3 a.m. in deference to the bars early morning hours. After that time, Miotto said his officers do their due diligence to find the owners of any remaining vehicles before any tickets are issued, often involving checking with patrons at the two bars.

Council president Robert Cockburn questioned why the police force was not enforcing the town ordinance as it is written, but emphasized he is not opposed to extending the parking hours. He expressed concern that laws that are selectively enforced and interpreted can lead to other problems.

Miotto noted the town ordinance restricting early morning parking is in place primarily so street cleaning may be done and overnight parking can be eliminated. Utilities manager Randy Veach added the town regularly conducts street cleaning at 4 a.m. Mondays so businesses are not affected while the work is being done.

The impetus for Cockrill’s and Hartman’s complaint, however, was an unscheduled street cleaning that took place during the early morning hours on a recent Saturday. Officers entered the bars at approximately 2 a.m. and instructed patrons their cars needed to be moved or risk being towed. Some patrons were concerned they might be arrested for intoxicated driving should they move their vehicles under the watchful eyes of the police, so many of the cars were moved by employees of the bars. Cockrill and Hartman both believe their businesses have been negatively affected following the event.

Veach noted the Saturday morning street cleaning was a “one-time deal,” and was done because of a break in the weather and in response to the amount of debris that had accumulated underneath the recently melted snow piles. He did not foresee it happening again under normal circumstances.

In response to the complaint, the council recommended the ordinance be revised so no parking be allowed between the hours of 4 a.m. and 6 a.m., rather than the current 2 a.m. restriction. The suggestion was met with approval by all parties concerned. Town attorney Jay Rigdon was instructed to amend the ordinance to reflect the change, to be presented and voted upon during the next town council meeting.

New signage will be ordered and will include horizontal arrows to emphasize the restrictions affect all parking spots, not just the ones directly in front of each sign.