Some Good News. And Some That's Not Quite So Good.

Yesterday, Commissioner Mac Kennedy sent out the following e-mail to many of us on his general Village circulation:

SELECT “HOT DRIVEWAY TOPICS”

IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER OR RANKING OF IMPORTANCE

1. All properties must provide off-street parking. That parking must be on private property rather than on “swales” or the public right of way along the street. The driveway must include an “approach” across the right of way. (This is not new.) Separate parking in the swale/ROW is allowed to an extent and addressed in a different part of the code, which we have just started working on to tighten that up, too.
2. All driveways must be permitted and approved by the village and PZ. Never start work on a driveway before your permit is approved and a physical copy issued to you, which must be posted on your property. (This is not new.)
3. No driveway may cover more than 40% of your front yard, regardless of the material you use. The rest of the front yard must be landscaped or green space. (This is new.)
4. January 2, 2023, is the deadline for all properties to include an approved driveway per the new code. After that date, Code can cite you. (This is new.) In several places in the new code, you'll see that the village is giving owners a full year to comply.
5. Properties with driveways that are not compliant with this new code may remain until they need 50% or more repaired. If any non-conforming driveway is added onto, it must be made fully compliant to the new code. (This is not new.) Existing driveways that need repairs of 50% or more now also have until January 2, 2023, to become fully compliant. That includes having an approach that reaches to the street, which is designed to match the driveway itself.
6. The required number of off-street parking spaces (plus separate off-street visitor parking) is determined by the number of bedrooms. A table is included in the code. (This is not new, but it has been updated to include larger homes.) Driveways with inadequate parking spaces are grandfathered in until they are replaced or substantially repaired. However, all vehicles must be parked on approved surfaces. No vehicles may be parked on grass on private property. (This is not new.)
7. All driveways must be of one material (list provided) or of one uniform design, all of which must be approved by the PZ before a permit is issued. Driveways may never be installed or replaced without a permit. (This has not changed substantially.)
8. Milled asphalt, crushed limestone and grass/sod are no longer approved driveway materials. (This is new.)
9. Gravel driveways must also be approved and permitted, and they must include a border. You may not simply dump gravel and spread it around and call it a driveway. (This is not new.)
10. Concrete driveways may be stained or painted, but the color must be approved by PZ first. (This is new, but the palette has not been finalized by PZ, and it must then be approved by the commission. As of right now, no concrete driveways may be painted or stained until the commission approves the palette.)
11. Edges along driveways must be relandscaped after installation. No bare soil, sand or gravel allowed along edges. (This is new.)
12. No raised driveways or edges are allowed. (This is new.)
13. Wheelstops have been determined to be a commercial application that is not allowed at single family homes or duplexes. Those are the concrete barriers commonly used in commercial parking lots. They will need to be removed. (This is new.)
14. Driveways may not drain water onto adjoining properties or public properties including the right of way (streets). (This is new.)
15. All driveways must be properly maintained, which includes sealing asphalt.
16. If you replace or repair 50% or more of a driveway, you must replace the entire thing. (This is new.)
17. If any part of a driveway is removed, it must be relandscaped or resodded.

https://legistarweb-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/attachment/pdf/1186640/Proposed_Ordinance_Amending_Off_Street_Parking_requirements_-_Second_Reading_-_changes_from_12.7.21.pdf

This is the current Commission's effort to redo the driveways and swales Code.  Mac correctly pointed out that some Commissions have honed and reformed this Code, but that none had reached what it considered an end point.  And of course, from the end of 2016 until now, no Commission (represented by a majority that can cause anything to happen) has really worked on anything.

So, to the extent that Mac is right to say that the Commission has somehow come together to finish whatever adjustments were the ambition of this Commission, and possibly some former ones, this is good news.  To say that some of the adjustments proposed are improvements over the previous Code is also good news.

There are a number of entries that Mac says are "not new."  This means that we have had these parts of the Code already on the books, but we just haven't enforced them.  There is no reason we shouldn't have enforced them.  Because they have been part of the Code sometimes for decades, and we haven't enforced them (for who knows what reasons), there is no reason to assume we will enforce them now.  So this is not quite so good news.

And it's worth noting that some of the particulars that Mac says are new are in fact not new.  Items 3 and 16 are like that.  And item 5 disqualifies the deadline in item 4, so that's not great news, either.

And we have still not disallowed impervious parking surfaces, which in my opinion, is not good news.  For example, item 14 prohibits homeowners from designing parking surfaces that will drain into the street.  If the surface is impermeable, where would it drain water?  I realize this is an assertive stance for the Village to take, but it's the job of leadership to take assertive stances.  And it's what the Village needs.

Other than that, it's a good and progressive move for the Village if we tighten up the driveways and swales Code.  I hope we do it.  And whether we remember the requirements that are not new, or impose requirements that are new, if we don't enforce them, then we've accomplished nothing.