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A bill allowing residents to restrict others wishing to park on their streets was signed into law Friday by Mayor Kirk Caldwell. Read more

A bill allowing residents to restrict others wishing to park on their streets was signed into law Friday by Mayor Kirk Caldwell.

Ordinance 19-1 creates a formal process for Oahu residents to petition the city Department of Transportation Services for what’s being called a restricting parking zone, or RPZ.

The zones could bar vehicles not displaying permits from parking in them entirely, reserve stalls in the zones for only those with permits during specific hours and/or restrict those without permits from parking beyond specified times.

The Honolulu City Council voted 6-1 to pass the measure March 8.

While the new law takes effect July 1, city officials said they might need more time to formulate rules for the program, a process that includes a public hearing and comment period. While DTS may accept the permits, they might not be processed right away, they said.

Councilwoman Carol Fukunaga introduced the bill last fall after a pilot program involving several neighborhoods in Kalihi Valley proved popular with residents who complained that people living in a nearby public housing complex were taking up stalls fronting their homes.

Fukunaga, at the March meeting, said the bill only establishes a process for people to petition for a zone, not allow one automatically. “The goal is really to give people who live in a neighborhood and whose properties are overrun by vehicles … from people who do not live in those areas some priority,” she said.

The Caldwell administration inserted funding for a new DTS employee to coordinate the new program. City officials estimate that for the program to break even, residents should expect to agree to pay about $231 annually for a parking permit, $77 for a visitor permit. That could differ depending on the size and scope of a zone, city officials said.

The new law defines an RPZ as “an area of at least four contiguous blocks in a residential- or apartment-­zoned district where vehicles properly displaying a permit or other authorization” exempt them from posted parking zone restrictions. To obtain a permit within a zone, a person must apply and show proof of residency within the zone. Each dwelling unit would be allowed up to four RPZ permits at any one time.

DTS will consider RPZ requests from neighborhoods where a majority of residents sign a petition for a zone. In making a decision to establish a zone, the DTS director will need to weigh, among other things, whether a zone would promote certain benefits or result in adverse impacts, whether there is a need for an RPZ, an “identifiable traffic generator,” and whether there has been sufficient community discussion on the matter.

If the DTS director determines an RPZ should be established, a resolution would be sent to the Council for approval.

Councilman Brandon Elefante, the lone “no” vote on the bill, said he appreciates why people would want an RPZ in their own neighborhoods. However, “I continue to have concerns about reserving city street parking spaces for specific individuals or groups,” Elefante said. “How is this fair and equal treatment for all our taxpayers who equally support these streets and roads with taxes?”

Elefante said he also worries the program won’t be able to financially sustain itself, which would require it to be subsidized by those not interested in establishing the zones.