Kaikōura’s mayor hopes proposed changes to the town’s parking rules will reduce “rude behaviour”.
The Kaikōura District Council approved a new draft traffic and parking bylaw for consultation at a council meeting on Wednesday, March 26.
Mayor Craig Mackle said the new rules would allow cars to park on grass verges, provided permission is obtained to park in front of someone’s property.
The new rules should take away “rude behaviour”, he said.
The proposed bylaw is more of “a tidy up” of the existing bylaw, which was adopted in 2018.
Changes to the bylaw are aimed at addressing parking on grass berms and vehicles displaying advertising or ‘vehicle for sale’ signs.
Several roads are too narrow for on-street parking, Mackle said.
“Beach Road (State Highway 1) in parts is far too narrow for parking, given the size of the trucks we have now.
“Even up on Scarborough, where you have the rural feel in the middle of town with the grass verges, it is an issue.
“The locals keep it tidy, but then people decide to park in front of someone’s house and rark them up.
“It doesn’t hurt to ask permission. If you ask permission, it’s fine, but if not we can take action.”
Parking a vehicle for the purposes of advertising is also prohibited under the bylaw, but it has been a long-standing practice for the council to allow the activity at certain locations.
Mackle said he supported continuing the practice.
But too often people were trying to sell cars in areas where “they don’t belong”, he said.
The council’s existing bylaw was adopted in 2018 and was based on the Christchurch City Council’s bylaw.
A new bylaw needs to be in place by December this year.
The proposed new bylaw will go out for consultation from April 17 to May 19.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
