Jones County Commissioners appear to come to a consensus about the issue of truck parking in an agricultural district, but the official vote on the issue will not take place until next month.
The zoning issue had been under discussion since June when the reported violation of the ordinance by an over-the-road truck driver prompted the submission of a text amendment. Under the current zoning, parking a commercial vehicle on a lot that contains a dwelling in a residential district is not permitted.
That meant the truck driver was not allowed to park the truck used to support his livelihood on his property because the lot had a house on it.
The Sept. 5 work session was the second held by board members to address the issue. The meeting was called to order by Board Chairman Chris Weidner.
The first work session about the parking issue was held Aug. 1 and got nowhere near an agreement on a text amendment. The code section involved in the amendment was Section 66, storage and parking of trailers and vehicles.
A staff report from Zoning Officer Tim Pitrowski, which board members had in their possession since the text amendment was on the July 18 meeting agenda, suggested allowing one commercial vehicle on any lot in the agricultural district.
At the conclusion of last week’s work session, that seemed agreeable to all the commissioners, with the addition of stipulations, such as meeting weight requirements of entry roads and not allowing parking in the front yard.
At the conclusion of the previous work session, Pitrowski was tasked with researching parking regulations in counties surrounding Jones County, which he did. The regulations were diverse, some limiting the size of the vehicle. Those with parking ordinances did require the vehicle not be parked in the front yard.
Pitrowski also explained the commissioners could grant the truck parking as a conditional use, which would mean each case would come before the board for approval. None of the commissioners were in favor of that.
One of the issues that bogged down the discussion at the previous work session was how to deal with agricultural equipment. Commissioner John Wood reported at the beginning of the Sept. 5 work session that he visited the USDA office that morning and found out that any farm-related equipment was essentially exempt from the ordinances.
“What we are talking about now is individuals who drive trucks for a living,” Wood said.
Commissioner Sam Kitchens said he thought the ordinance should look like the county’s Blight Ordinance, in that nothing can be parked in the front yard.
The discussion included the option of requiring the trucks to come in without their trailers, known as bobtail.
Commissioner Daylon Martin said he knew there was no happy place for everyone.
“I’d say any owner operator should have every right to bring his truck into his neighborhood and park it on his property,” he said.
The commissioner said that is not unusual for Kingsview Village, but no one complains.
At the end of the meeting, Weidner said he agreed to allowing the parking of one vehicle so long as it was not seen from the road.
Pitrowski agreed to reword the ordinance amendment to include the stipulations agreed by board members. He said the amendment process was still within the date requirements.
Weidner requested the amendment be placed on the agenda for the next meeting for approval.
