Kenai’s City Council is considering a new fine of $75 for drivers who use parking lots or other property as a roadway.
An ordinance introduced during the council’s June 4 meeting, set for public hearing and action at the June 18 meeting, would add new language to city code saying that “no driver of a motor vehicle may leave the roadway and drive through a parking lot or other private or public property for the purpose of accessing another public roadway.”
The move comes after months of action to prevent drivers from crossing through the parking lot of the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center to access Overland Avenue while bypassing the stoplight at the intersection of the Kenai Spur Highway and Main Street.
In November, a barricade was set up blocking the entrance to the chamber’s parking lot from Overland Avenue. In December, the barricade was moved to block the other entrance of the parking lot from the Kenai Spur Highway. In recent months, new signage has been installed to mark the Kenai Spur Highway exit as a one-way exit.
Chief of Police Dave Ross said during the council’s May 7 meeting that the issue of “rat running” has been ongoing. He pointed specifically to reports of vehicles speeding through the chamber parking lot to skip both a stoplight and a stop sign.
Fairbanks and Anchorage both impose a similar fine, and Ross said law enforcement in those communities said they’d found the fine useful as a deterrent. At that meeting, Ross said he and City Manager Terry Eubank were asking the council if they would be willing to consider that legislation, which became the ordinance introduced this month.
“A citation ordinance, making it illegal, is a tool,” Ross said. “I don’t think it’s a solution that would satisfy everybody or immediately solve everything, but it’s a tool in the toolbox.”
Members of the council said they were supportive of adding that tool. Member Phil Daniel said he wanted to see other mitigation efforts like speed bumps also added to the lot.
The council will consider the ordinance at their June 18 meeting. If enacted then, the new code would be effective starting July 18.
Ahead of the ordinance’s introduction on June 4, one person spoke in opposition, saying that people should be able to cut through parking lots in Kenai.
A full recording of the council’s May 7 discussion on rat running can be found on the City of Kenai Public Meetings YouTube channel.
Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.
