Council Grapples With RVs, Commercial Vehicles in Municipal Parking

The Leonia Borough Council convened in a recent session tackling several pressing issues, notably the debate over whether to permit RVs, commercial vans, and other large vehicles in the municipal parking lot, a proposal influenced by rising home-based work trends and parking stress.

Many council members showed resistance to allowing larger vehicles in municipal lots. “I’m wondering what problem we are trying to solve here,” one councilman remarked, implying potential parking space issues for large vehicles. A prominent concern was the potential misuse of parking spots, especially with RVs. One member noted the risk of individuals sleeping in RVs overnight, saying, “I don’t think we want people sleeping in the municipal lot.”

A study by the administrator’s office revealed that Leonia’s current parking charges were considerably lower than neighboring areas. Fort Lee, for instance, levies significantly higher yearly charges on commercial vehicles. The Laws of Ordinance Committee had proposed increasing parking fees but hadn’t provided clarity on permitting these vehicles in the municipal parking lot.

Councilwoman Maureen Davis emphasized that owners of RVs and large vehicles had alternatives, such as commercial lots. “It’s not like people who have an RV won’t be able to park it if we don’t provide it in the borough. They can pay for it just like my friend does at a commercial lot,” she said.

There was a shared sentiment about consistent enforcement. A councilman highlighted the need for clarity in ordinances, saying, “This is more of us being responsible with our ordinances and seeing if we’re really enforcing them or not.” Given the already strained capacity in parking lots, Councilman Ziegler was against RVs and oversized vehicles, favoring only passenger cars or similar-sized vehicles.

The meeting also touched upon ordinance 2023-15, which suggested that personnel policies be adopted by resolution every two years for clarity and consistency. Ordinance 2023-16 aimed to amend fire prevention policies, refining the criteria for which residential units are subjected to the ordinance. Another noteworthy resolution, 2023-186, stemmed from an architectural miscalculation that would lead to a misalignment of metal panels on a borough building, costing the borough approximately $10,000 to rectify.

On enforcement matters, the meeting shed light on the police department’s role, which, while reactive to complaints, does not proactively patrol for zoning ordinance or property maintenance violations. There was a general consensus for the police to take on more responsibility, especially concerning the potential parking issue of commercial vehicles soon to be barred from EnVac.

The session broached the capital budget for 2023, where a total capital improvement budget of $811,781 was proposed. However, the discussion was postponed due to accessibility issues with a pertinent document.

Ending the session, the council entered a closed executive meeting to discuss affordable housing and human resources issues.

Note: This meeting summary was generated by AI, which can occasionally misspell names, misattribute actions, and state inaccuracies. This summary is intended to be a starting point and you should review the meeting record linked above before acting on anything you read. If we got something wrong, let us know. We’re working every day to improve our process in pursuit of universal local government transparency.
Not avaliable:

City Council Officials:

Receive debriefs about local meetings in your inbox weekly:

Trending meetings
across the country:

Meeting Date
Filter by bodytypes
Agricultural Advisory Committee
Airport Advisory Board
Art and Culture Board
Beach Committee
Bike and Pedestrian Advisory Committee
Board of Elections
Board of Health
Borough Council
Building Committee
Cannabis Control Board
Cemetery Commission
Charter Revision Commission
Child and Family Services Board
City Council
City Identity Committee
Code Enforcement Board
College Board of Trustees
Community Appearance Board
Community Preservation Committee
Community Redevelopment Agency
County Council
Disability Advisory Committee
Economic Development Board
Elderly Affairs Board
Electric Advisory Board
Environmental Commission
Financial Oversight Board
Historic Preservation Commission
Housing Authority
Human Relations Committee
Human Resources Committee
Insurance Fund
Land Use Board
Library Board
Licensing Board
Mental Health Commission
Municipal Alliance
Open Space Commission
Oversight and Review Committee
Parent Advisory Board
Parking Authority
Parks and Gardens Commission
Parks Commission
Pension Board
Planning Board
Police Review Board
Port Authority
Property Assessment Board
Public Safety Committee
Recreation Commission
Redevelopment Agency
Rent Control Board
Rent Leveling Board
School Board
Sewerage Authority
Shade Tree Commission
Special Magistrate
Taxation & Revenue Advisory Committee
Tourism Board
Trails Committee
Transportation Board
Utility Board
Value Adjustment Board
Veterans Committee
Water Control Board
Women's Advisory Committee
Youth Advisory Committee
Zoning Board
Filter by County
FL
Bay County
Bradford County
Brevard County
Broward County
Clay County
Duval County
Escambia County
Gulf County
Hendry County
Highlands County
Hillsborough County
Indian River County
Lake County
Lee County
Leon County
Levy County
Liberty County
Manatee County
Marion County
Martin County
Miami-Dade County
Monroe County
Okaloosa County
Orange County
Osceola County
Palm Beach County
Pasco County
Pinellas County
Polk County
Putnam County
Santa Rosa County
Sarasota County
Seminole County
St. Johns County
Taylor County
Volusia County
Walton County
MA
Barnstable County
Berkshire County
Bristol County
Essex County
Franklin County
Hampden County
Hampshire County
Middlesex County
Norfolk County
Plymouth County
Suffolk County
Worcester County
MN
Anoka County
Becker County
Beltrami County
Benton County
Blue Earth County
Brown County
Carver County
Cass County
Chippewa County
Chisago County
Clay County
Cook County
Crow Wing County
Dakota County
Freeborn County
Goodhue County
Grant County
Hennepin County
Isanti County
Itasca County
Kanabec County
Kandiyohi County
Koochiching County
Lac Qui Parle County
Lyon County
Mcleod County
Morrison County
Mower County
Nicollet County
Olmsted County
Pipestone County
Polk County
Ramsey County
Rice County
Scott County
Sherburne County
Sibley County
St Louis County
Stearns County
Steele County
Waseca County
Washington County
Wright County
NJ
Atlantic County
Bergen County
Burlington County
Camden County
Cape May County
Cumberland County
Essex County
Gloucester County
Hudson County
Hunterdon County
Mercer County
Middlesex County
Monmouth County
Morris County
Ocean County
Passaic County
Somerset County
Sussex County
Union County
Warren County
NY
Bronx County
Kings County
New York County
Queens County
Richmond County
TN
Shelby County
Filter by sourcetypes
Minutes
Recording