http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/14085368.htm

Posted on Mon, Mar. 13, 2006
Lawn parking under fireNeighbors are working to ban practice, calling it an ‘eyesore’By JOY L. WOODSONjwoodson@thestate.comWith three drivers, two cars, one driveway and no working garage, parking on the front lawn is easiest for Michael Fiorello’s family.
But some neighbors in Fiorello’s Pine Valley-Kingswood neighborhood want the county to ban parking on front lawns.
“It’s unfortunate that they want to do that,” Fiorello said. “Some people park on their lawns out of necessity.”
County Council has received numerous complaints about vehicles parked on lawns countywide — so leaders are looking to tighten parking restrictions.
“It’s just an eyesore,” said Ed Hogue, a resident of Candlewood, a subdivision in Northeast Richland. “People buy cars and let them rot in the yard, and that just makes no sense at all.”
Richland County Council members say banning cars from front lawns is unlikely. But they say they can tackle one problem: inoperable cars parked on lawns.
A committee March 28 will consider banning any inoperable car — licensed or unlicensed — from being parked for more than 30 days where it can be seen from a public right of way.
Such cars could be stored in a garage or carport.
Councilwoman Val Hutchinson said the county ordinance — which allows any vehicle, in any condition, to be parked anywhere on the property as long as it is registered — doesn’t go far enough.
“The unsightliness of someone’s front lawn has an effect on everybody’s property values,” she said.
County Councilman Mike Montgomery said the first step is dealing with improperly parked, unlicensed vehicles. Then the county could take on problems with licensed vehicles, he said.
The council wants to “solve the problem without putting undue burden on people and without creating a nightmare for law enforcement, as well,” he said.
PETITIONING FOR CHANGE
A stronger Richland County parking ordinance would help neighborhoods, Montgomery said. Groups often find it difficult to enforce neighborhood parking covenants and must hire attorneys.
Other local governments restrict parking on lawns.
• In the city of Columbia, no vehicle is allowed to be parked on lawns.
• In Lexington County, unlicensed vehicles cannot be parked on a property for more than 30 days.
In Pine Valley-Kingswood, neighborhood association leaders are gathering residents’ signatures on a petition to take to County Council, said James Whitmire, association president.
Though the goal is to change their neighborhood covenant to limit parking to designated areas, including driveways or garages, it could be an impetus for a countywide change, he said.
“Ultimately, we do have to be considerate of our neighbors and of the community in which we live,” he said.
But Councilwoman Joyce Dickerson said she is not likely to support an ordinance that goes as far as the Pine Valley-Kingswood community leaders want.
It comes down to this, she said: Residents might need to park on their lawns sometimes.
“You can’t just go around telling people that they just can’t park on the lawns,” she said. “Can you imagine if we tried to pass something like that? In the rural areas, it would just not be feasible.”
But Montgomery said “eyesores” need to be removed from neighborhoods.
“I think it’s a quality-of-life issue,” he said. “It’s about people respecting their neighbors and their neighborhoods.”

 

Some people are just looking for stuff to cause even more problems. I live in these "new & fancy" housing developments and parking in the yard is all we have if we were to have people over. So if they want cars to park in the street, so be it....then that would cause another problem because the cars are now in the road way. Its a lose lose situation. No-one will be happy.

 

thats insane. I had no idea,

so it's illegal to keep a project car in your driveway???

 

Not that I live in these high dollar subdivisions but if I did, I believe I too be pissed if people parked their cars in their front lawn. Now having said that, if you are a home owner then you most likely can relate to other peoples frustrations but at times, with larger families and drivers, parking on lawns, etc may be the only way around it. Now here is where I have a big problem.... if you have a licensed vehicle parked in your driveway/lawn that you have insured and pay taxes and you are not allowed to give it a break for 30 days plus in lex. county..... f$$them. just my .002 c

 

If you guys think that's bad then move out to Cali!!!! I miss living in SC so bad it's not even funny!

Zach

 

Nobody put a gun to your head and told you to move now did they? I lived close to LA for about 7 months and I will never do that again. Driving 5 miles to the store took 45 minutes I mean it five miles for crying out lound.

And ye the whole thing of dont park on the front lawn bullshit I say I payed for the land the house sits on so there fore I use it how ever I see fit it is a free country now isnt it. YOu could go a long way with this thats is why they are limiting the whole unregisted or inoperatable whehicals and so on but thay really cant forbid me from parking on my front lawn if I dond have any other choice.

 

I'LL PARK MY CARS WHERE EVER I DAM WELL PLEASE, AND IF U GIVE ME CRAP ABOUT IT THEN u

 

^ just kidding ppl.
Seriously though, the "parking law" is stupid.

 

booo