Newmarket resident Lauren Merklinger said her neighbourhood has long been plagued by illegally parked cars.
The Lundy’s Lane area resident said every day vehicles are parked along her street due to its proximity to Southlake Regional Health Centre and the Medical Arts Building. She said she has even had cars blocking her driveway and people throwing their litter on her lawn.
The town's efforts with parking signs and enforcement have not been enough to stop them, she said.
With the municipality planning now to step up enforcement efforts, Merklinger said the town sincerely wants to help but she questioned whether anything short of auto-ticketing would be enough.
“They are genuinely aware of the issues and understand our concerns for traffic and pedestrian safety, as well as the overall enjoyment of our neighbourhood, which is becoming a parking lot for the hospital and Medical Arts Building,” she said. “The problem is that signage doesn’t work.”
Newmarket is preparing to crack down on illegal parking in the Lundy’s Lane area. Council tentatively approved a new special enforcement zone June 17. This will allow fines to rise from $50 for most parking infractions to $200, with a $400 fine for parking on private property.
The town also plans to put up associated signage and start a bylaw enforcement blitz with a hard-line stance.
“A zero tolerance approach will be taken,” a staff report said. “Proper signage will be erected within the SEZ (special enforcement zone) to ensure anyone deciding to park in violation is aware that they are doing so contrary to council-approved regulations, leaving no need for enforcement staff to issue warnings.”
The zone would apply to Lundy’s Lane and surrounding residential streets. The move comes after years of resident complaints, with the customer service department having received 464 parking complaints about the area since 2018.
Ward Councillor Jane Twinney said the parking issues for the neighbourhood date back almost 20 years.
“It’s only gotten worse with time,” Twinney said, thanking residents for pushing the town on this issue. “I’m glad to see that we’re moving toward some really great ways of improving this area.”
Merklinger said increased fines are a positive, but added that with the frequency of violators, she believes that auto-ticketing via camera is the only way to address the issue. She also expressed concern with bylaw officers being too lenient with warnings in the past.
The area is expected to have increased growth in the years to come, with different residential developments in the middle of the neighbourhood, and along Davis Drive. Council also tentatively approved a new 767-unit residential development at 615 Davis Dr. and Bolton Avenue.
Merklinger said that stands to create much more traffic in the neighbourhood, but hopefully, an additional road that's now part of the submission for 615 Davis will help alleviate that.
“We have a right to enjoy our properties and feel safe on our roads,” she said. “This all comes down to poor planning by the town. This is their opportunity to meaningfully plan for the amount of growth coming into this area. I am not against development, I am just a resident begging the town to fix these traffic issues.”
