Nevada County Advances Parking Restrictions on Four Roads

NEVADA COUNTY — Nevada County supervisors advanced overnight parking restrictions on four roads Tuesday, September 15, after county staff cited sanitation and traffic hazards and residents urged the board to provide safe places for people living in vehicles.

The proposals would prohibit parking from 10 PM to 5 AM in posted areas along East Bennett Road, Old State Highway 49, Combie Road, and Van Norden Lake Road. Part of Combie Road would also have an around-the-clock parking ban. The four introduced ordinances will need to return to the board before being formally adopted.

Public Works staff developed the restrictions following concerns raised at the board’s January workshop. In staff reports, the department identified human waste in places without public bathrooms, litter, and vehicles obstructing access for residents and emergency responders. The ordinance findings for East Bennett Road, Old State Highway 49, and Van Norden Lake Road also cite the risk of wildfires started by campers cooking.

The proposed restrictions apply to vehicles parked in the county road right-of-way where signs designate the limits:

• Van Norden Lake Road: Overnight restrictions from Soda Springs Road to the Placer County line.

• East Bennett Road: Overnight restrictions from Brunswick Road to the Grass Valley city limit.

• Old State Highway 49: Overnight restrictions on the loop across Shady Creek between its two connections with State Highway 49.

• Combie Road: Overnight restrictions from the Magnolia Road–West Hacienda Road intersection to 900 feet south. Parking would be prohibited at all hours within 50 feet south of the intersection and along the northbound side extending 530 feet south of it.

On Combie Road, staff cited narrow shoulders, a bus stop, and limited sight distance as reasons for the all-hours restrictions. Sign installation would be paid from the county’s roads maintenance budget, according to the staff reports.

Patrick Perkins, the county’s principal civil engineer, told supervisors that staff had visited the locations to evaluate complaints and evidence of overnight parking. He said visible signs would help officers enforce the restrictions.

Board Chair Lisa Swarthout said she had received numerous calls about East Bennett Road. She also noted that roadside parking serves people storing extra vehicles and commercial vehicles, as well as people sleeping in them.

Tom Durkin, speaking for the No Place To Go Project, said the problem for people living in vehicles was where they could go when parking spaces were closed.

“We don’t object to the parking ordinance at all,” Durkin said. “What we object to is that we don’t know where people can park.”

Durkin, who told the board he had experienced homelessness himself, warned that the restrictions could push people into neighborhoods or the woods. He urged supervisors to consider safe parking programs and provide trash disposal.

Public Works Director David Garcia told supervisors that a 72-hour parking rule generally applies on public roads where people can park safely and no other restriction is posted.

The debate followed the board’s July 28 rejection of an RV housing ordinance. That proposal would have allowed recreational vehicles to serve as permanent housing on qualifying private properties. Supervisors voted 5-0 to deny it.

Supervisor Heidi Hall supported the road restrictions but said the county also needed to find places where people could stay in their vehicles with access to sanitation. “We are squeezing them and pushing them out and we’re gonna have to do more, in my view, to find places where they can go,” she said.

Supervisor Hardy Bullock said safe parking was worth revisiting and asked for information the county could give residents about places currently available for overnight stays.

Swarthout suggested working with churches and other faith organizations, noting that some have large parking lots and sanitation facilities. She said she was willing to help facilitate those conversations.

Supervisors voted 5-0 in separate roll calls to advance each of the four parking ordinances.