Over the past several months there has been a big fight between Antioch's trailered boat owners (and owners of RVs and other towed things) over the storage of those boats & trailers. For decades locals have been parking them in their driveway. Last fall, the city stumbled upon an old ordinance prohibiting parking these in your driveway, and started sending out notices and ticketing and fining people. It was ugly: In one case, the people being fined had, only a year before, asked the city if it was legal to park the boat in the driveway, the city answered yes, and so he applied for and received a permit to add onto his driveway, specifically for parking the boat. And if that weren't enough, the way the fines were set up, you could not appeal the fine until you paid it! People were being fined $500 PER DAY! Meanwhile, what little alternate boat storage there was at storage rental places was snapped up: there hadn't been nearly the demand before, because people were free to park it in the driveway.
Anyway, before long people were ready to pull out their pitchforks and light their torches. The city council graciously suspended enforcement while the matter was ironed out, but a special subcommittee on the matter broke down and couldn't come to a compromise anybody could be happy with.
TONIGHT: the Antioch City Council settles the issue. Their first option is to come up with some sort of compromise ordinance that allows more freedom for people to park their boats, RVs, trailers and other things in their driveway, OR let the City Attorney write up a ballot ordinance, and the voters would decide it. I'm very nervous about an apathetic city electorate unaware of the issues voting to restrict the property rights of the minority because they don't understand the question.
A number of other city officials in the area have said they're watching Antioch's situation on this issue closely, and may enact similar ordinances in their communities. If you are in the area from Bay Point to Discovery Bay, what happens at tonight's meeting will have influence on your town too. Even if you don't live in Antioch, you probably know somebody who does, and possibly somebody directly affected by this overbearing ordinance. Tonight the rubber meets the road for Antioch and the east Contra Costa / west delta area.
If you'd like to attend the meeting, it's at the Antioch City Hall council chambers, at H St between 2nd and 3rd Sts in Antioch, starting at 6:30 pm. I encourage you to come.
Anyway, before long people were ready to pull out their pitchforks and light their torches. The city council graciously suspended enforcement while the matter was ironed out, but a special subcommittee on the matter broke down and couldn't come to a compromise anybody could be happy with.
TONIGHT: the Antioch City Council settles the issue. Their first option is to come up with some sort of compromise ordinance that allows more freedom for people to park their boats, RVs, trailers and other things in their driveway, OR let the City Attorney write up a ballot ordinance, and the voters would decide it. I'm very nervous about an apathetic city electorate unaware of the issues voting to restrict the property rights of the minority because they don't understand the question.
A number of other city officials in the area have said they're watching Antioch's situation on this issue closely, and may enact similar ordinances in their communities. If you are in the area from Bay Point to Discovery Bay, what happens at tonight's meeting will have influence on your town too. Even if you don't live in Antioch, you probably know somebody who does, and possibly somebody directly affected by this overbearing ordinance. Tonight the rubber meets the road for Antioch and the east Contra Costa / west delta area.
If you'd like to attend the meeting, it's at the Antioch City Hall council chambers, at H St between 2nd and 3rd Sts in Antioch, starting at 6:30 pm. I encourage you to come.