Parking ordinance still stalled in Carpentersville

An ordinance banning heavy vehicles from parking on driveways and local streets in Carpentersville will sit idle for at least another month to allow the village board time to devise a compromise regarding certain school buses and large personal vehicles.

The newly-elected board this week voted unanimously to table the ordinance, which would have allowed for 25-seat school buses that weigh less than 15,000 pounds to park on private property. It was the second time in as many meetings that the proposal was shelved.

This time, trustees proposed tweaking the ordinance to ban commercial vehicles weighing more than 8,000 pounds after residents argued the ordinance would affect drivers of large sport utility vehicles, like the Chevrolet Suburban and Cadillac Escalade.

"I don't think we are ready to vote on this," said Village President Ed Ritter, who said an ordinance committee should have considered the matter before it was taken to the board for approval. "We don't agree on what is being brought forward."

The ordinance seeks to ban vehicles weighing more than 8,000 pounds from parking on private driveways, local streets and alleys. Village officials said the law was intended to discourage the use of scrappers - pickup trucks and other large vehicles that are modified to haul scrap metal and other materials.

But after a group of school bus drivers from Barrington Unit District 220 argued the ordinance would prohibit them from parking their school buses at home, trustees at the April 21 meeting directed Village Attorney James Rhodes to include language exempting certain school buses.

Some drivers use smaller school buses for personal use in addition to transporting special needs students to and from school.

The board will not take action on the issue for at least one month.