Politics & Government

Council to Vote on Day Care Parking Minimums

Also, an ordinance establishing sign regulations is up for first introduction.

The Chatham Borough Council will vote on an ordinance that would require day care and child care centers in town to have a minimum number of parking spaces.

The number of spaces required would be one per staff member and one space per every 10 students. If it passes, it goes into effect immediately and applies to any licensed establishment which watches over 6 or more children for three or more hours a day.

Existing day care centers will be grandfathered in, but if they wish to make any changes to their facilities that require municipal approval they will need to fulfill the parking requirements.

Find out what's happening in Chathamwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The ordinance was approved on first reading at the Sept. 12 meeting. The Planning Board approved the ordinance at their Aug. 17 meeting by a 4-to-3 vote. Dissenters included H.H. Montague, who said including a three-hour minimum was "essentially exempting everybody. Why have a parking spot rule because, if you get it up to three hours, you accept everybody?”

Joseph Mikulewicz of the Planning Board also dissented. He said the one-for-10-students rule be changed, possibly to one for every 20 students, to incorporate more children.

Find out what's happening in Chathamwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“I don’t know what other communities have, but we’re not a place like Parsippany,” Mikulewicz said. “Chatham Borough is very child-heavy and a family community. I think this would be a detriment the way it’s proposed.”

Councilman and Board Member Bruce Harris countered, saying if there is not adequate parking, the borough risks traffic problems.

Parking on Snow-Covered Streets

Another ordinance up for a vote amends the borough's existing ordinance prohibiting parking on snow-covered streets. This ordinance allows police to remove parked cars from public streets during snow removal, with fees paid by the car owner and deems the cars "a nuisance and a menace to the safe and proper regulation of traffic."

The Chatham Borough Council meets at the at 7:30 p.m.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Chatham