The Park City Council on Thursday chose to idle a discussion about people who leave vehicle engines running.
The elected officials indicated they wanted more information before they would decide whether to tighten City Hall’s anti-idling law. The Park City Police Department and staffers who work on the municipal government’s environmental programs plan to further refine the proposal to tighten the law and then return to the City Council with more details.
It appears the staffers will discuss issues like the enforcement of a tightened law against idling, including the roles of the Police Department and the team that monitors parking rules. Ann Ober, a City Hall policy adviser, told the City Council a proposal will be drafted and presented at a meeting in late March or early April. Rick Ryan, who is a Police Department captain, said the police want to discuss with parking officials which department will track the enforcement.
City Councilors seemed to support the idea of tightening the anti-idling law once a redone proposal is presented.
“The idling is polluting our air,” City Councilman Andy Beerman said.
He said the municipal government’s goal is to stop people from idling vehicles rather than issue tickets.
Tim Henney, another City Councilor, said he has seen eight vehicles idling outside the state liquor store at Snow Creek.
“There are hotspots,” he said.
Two people provided input to the City Council, both of them in support of tightening the law. One of them, Old Town resident Hylton Early, said it will be important to post more signs in places like Main Street, the China Bridge garage and the Sandridge parking lot. He also said taxis and shuttles are an issue, telling the City Council he recently saw five of those vehicles idling in the vicinity of Main Street.
In an interview afterward, Matt Abbott, the environmental project manager at City Hall, said the Police Department and parking officials recently became more heavily involved in the discussions about tightening the law against idling. Abbott will work closely with the others as the changes are prepared for a later City Council meeting.
Abbott said it is unlikely the staffers will modify the proposed changes presented to the City Council on Thursday unless the elected officials request they be redone.
The discussions on Thursday centered on a law enacted in late 2010 as part of City Hall’s broad environmental efforts. The anti-idling law allows someone to idle a vehicle for up to three minutes at any time. Idling is allowed without a time limit when the temperature outside is colder than 32 degrees Fahrenheit or hotter than 90 degrees Fahrenheit.
City Hall staffers want the three-minute limit to be reduced to one minute and want the temperature allowance eliminated. Some exceptions would continue to be included in the law, such as when a vehicle is stuck in traffic and when turning off the engine would threaten the safety of someone inside the vehicle or a service animal that is inside. Someone would continue to be allowed to defrost windows for longer than the time limit.