ROSEBORO — Following the complaints of residents who live on N.E. Railroad Street, commissioners have decided to make a portion of the street a no parking zone.
During the October meeting, following a resident’s complaint, commissioner Alice Butler presented a proposal to the board that would make the area in front of the Roseboro Community Building a no parking zone. Butler said she had received complaints from a nearby homeowner who had a problem with the cars that are parking in the area, citing a safety issue.
The issue was tabled until November.
“This is a safety issue for people who are driving,” Butler said. “We need to mark it off and make it a no parking zone.”
At the November meeting Tuesday night, commissioners voted to change the area at 208 N.E. Railroad Street to a no parking zone. This means that the homeowner, or their visitors, are not allowed to park in the area.
“We need to mark designated parking out there,” commissioner Richard Barefoot said. “People don’t need to park in front of the house. Let’s help the homeowner out and make it no parking.”
Butler, who said the chief complaint has been parking, said she felt the area was accident prone and a safety issue.
“I don’t see it as an issue with parking,” Butler said. “We have to satisfy the citizens of Roseboro. We are concerned about the safety for people using the community building.”
The specific design features of the area and exact measurements of the zone were not determined, but commissioner Cary Holland said he would work on getting it complete.
“Give me some time to come up with a design that will look appropriate,” Holland said. “There are a lot features to address.”
For now, the Board said they were more concerned with addressing the parking zone and making it a no parking area and would look into designing additional parking at a later date.
“We only need a lot of parking when the place is rented,” Holland said. “Let’s do this right and not rush into the parking thing.”
Sampson County Sheriff’s deputy Jeremy Honeycutt was present during the meeting and addressed the safety concerns and violations if someone were to park in the area.
“We can enforce if it is specific in the ordinance,” Honeycutt said. “Law enforcement works off directives and we will enforce whatever you say in the ordinance.”
If someone is found in violation of the ordinance, Honeycutt said the sheriff’s department would issue the citation, but the town would be responsible for collecting.
While the board voted to make the area a no parking zone, the wording of the ordinance was tabled allowing the town’s attorney, Sandy Sanderson, time to work on making the changes and setting a fine for those caught in violation.
