Berm parkers to be warned
Nelson parking wardens will start handing out warnings to people parking on berms after the council received backlash to the $70 fines.
The Nelson City Council voted to ban parking on berms in urban areas in 2023, with the new rule coming into effect on November 3 of that year.
However, at a council workshop last month, officers sought guidance from elected members about the best enforcement approach for the offence, which nets a $70 fine. The fine was $40 until October last year.
The council had dished out 224 tickets since the rule change, but stopped issuing tickets in February while staff waited for councillor advice.
Of the 224 tickets, 74 were cancelled on appeal, while 99 were paid, with the remaining 51 referred to the courts for non-payment.
The rule change was in response to public complaints and queries about the practice, as well as combating damage being done to kerbs, the grass, and infrastructure buried under berms.
At the council workshop, mayor Nick Smith summed up the problem: “there has been quite strong push-back and criticism from the community”.
Group manager environmental management Mandy Bishop said there had been “some upset caused”, but also pointed out that officers didn’t target the offence, instead issuing tickets if they happened to see it.
“They don’t go around looking for it.”
As an experiment, officers were recently sent to look at how much of a problem berm parking was, and found 60 examples in 60 minutes, regulatory services manager Ryno Botha√ told the councillors.
They had been issuing an average of four tickets a week, he said.
“If we want to go out and issue a lot of tickets we can issue about 60 a day.”
Parking wardens would use discretion before issuing a ticket, such as looking at whether there was adequate on-street parking, or if the street was narrow making parking on the berm the safest option.
Those matters were also considered when tickets were appealed, he said.
People could also apply for a free permit to park on a berm, with availability for parking and underground services among the matters considered when assessing an application, the councillors were told.
Councillors questioned whether offenders were given a warning first, and were told they weren’t, but that there had been advertising and media coverage of the rule changes.
Most of the councillors agreed the need for banning berm parking was solid, but advised the staff to change their enforcement approach, and instead look to issue warnings first.
“We really need to go back to that education first approach,” councillor Campbell Rollo said.
“They’re good people that are getting parking tickets without fair warning.”
Councillor James Hodgson said the bylaw was sound.
“I think the bylaw is a good thing, but that is the enforcement approach I would expect to see, is a warning first, education … not going straight to issuing a fine.”
Councillor Mel Courtney said warning first was clearly the best approach, but it was a matter of ensuring public safety.
“I’m on the side of the pedestrian … they are made vulnerable by this activity.”
Bishop agreed it was a good approach.
“The warning system is a good one, that instead of infringing straight up that we warn. But this is not, again, something that we’re targeting.”
The councillors were also updated on enforcement of new rules about where businesses can display sandwich boards in the city.
The council proposed to ban the use of sandwich boards last year, as part of a review of activities in public places.
The move was backed by the low vision and disabled communities, who said the signs created hazards on the footpath, limiting accessibility.
But, many businesses said removing signs would be another blow to struggling retailers in the CBD, leading to a compromise which limited the use to one rigid sign per business, on the roadside edge of the footpath with a minimum 1.8m clearway for pedestrians.
At the workshop, the councillors were advised a period of education had taken place, and they now believed businesses were well informed about the new rules and they would shift to a warning system before removing signs of repeat offenders.
By Warren Gamble, Nelson Mail
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