Bridgeport wrestles with right-of-way, law enforcement issues

BRIDGEPORT – At its regular August meeting the city council addressed a pair of weighty issues that warrant prompt attention, one before winter snow requires street plowing and the other for continued law enforcement coverage.

The city, together with other small communities in Douglas County, has been presented with a last-minute demand for increased law enforcement contract costs that are beyond its budget to afford.

“They are hitting us with a big increase,” said Mayor Janet Conklin.

The first three years are a phase-in to a target figure of $310,000 said clerk/treasurer Judy Brown.

“The first year is a little over 24 percent,” said Brown. “In three years, it turns into a 72 percent increase.”

Brown estimates that in four years the new contract demand would require 38 percent of the city’s general fund.

The city’s current contract with the Douglas County Sheriff provides for a three-percent yearly increase.

Conklin said she was unhappy with the Sheriff’s take-it-or-leave-it position.

I wouldn’t be as hard-nosed about it if we were getting services that we were getting before Covid,” said Conklin.

Brown said to arrive at the contract figure the department analyzed all the calls that came from the Bridgeport city limits, eliminated those felony and serious crime calls that deputies were required respond to, and calculated the cost per incident to respond to everything left to come up with the new contract figure.

The Sheriff’s goal is to hire sufficient deputies to provide 24/7 coverage and service to the north end of the county.

Conklin consulted with the city’s legal counsel, Julie Norton, and later met with other city mayors affected to seek a solution. That meeting resulted in a request to meet with the Douglas County Commissioners to continue a search for a solution.

Right-of-way parking

Vehicles parked on the city right-of-way – some in undriveable condition – interfere with maintenance vehicles that spray weeds, clean streets, and plow snow.

Last winter the city had difficulties with street snow removal because of vehicles parked on city rights-of-way. The right-of-way in question is not the paved portion of the street but the dirt strip between the pavement and sidewalk or property line.

“I think our BMC (Bridgeport Municipal Code) is outdated,” said Brown referring to parking enforcement, “and it needs to be brought up to date.”

Superintendent of Public Works Stuart Dezellem said part of the problem is the city’s oversight not to require off-street parking space on every residential property. Many residents have completely fenced their properties leaving no access gate to allow them to park extra vehicles on their premises rather than the street.

Dezellem suggested requiring each residence to have a minimum of two vehicle spaces for off-street parking and further suggested that the code be changed, and residents given 24 months to comply with the new requirement.

The code requires new homes to provide off-street parking.

Dezellem said the current code that has been in effect before the ban working for the city in 2007 requires even/odd day parking.

“Current code reads from Nov. 15 to March 15 you park on the odd side of the street on an odd day and on the even side of the street on an even day,” said Dezellem. “I don’t think that’s a useable code.”

Dezellem suggested a solution resembling the code provision for the downtown that currently has a parking restriction prohibiting street parking between the hours of 1 a.m. and 7 a.m. from 13th to 10th streets.

Council members decided on two actions, to craft some ordinance ideas for the September council meeting and to initiate a public education effort through notices placed on vehicle windshields explaining why the city needs to have right-of-way access for winter parking and street cleaning.