TO: Mayor and Members of City Council
THRU: Adam Lindsay, ICMA-CM, Assistant City Manager
FROM: Sheila Thomas-Ambat, PE, CCM, CFM, Public Services Director
Brian McGill, PE, PTOE, Assistant Public Services Director - Traffic Services
DATE: November 24, 2025
RE:Title
Adopting Council Policy 160.09.2 - The Policy for Residents to Request “No Parking” in Multi-Use Lanes
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COUNCIL DISTRICT(S):
Council District(s)
All Districts
b
Relationship To Strategic Plan:
Goal IV: Be a highly desirable place to live, work, and recreate.
Executive Summary:
Council requested staff develop a process for “No Parking” in multi-use lanes, similar to the speed hump process. This request is the result of discussion from the June 2, 2025 Council Work Session, where staff provided the Bicycle Lane Ordinance Clarifications and Recommendations presentation.
Staff presented research, and asked for guidance from Council, at the September 2, 2025 Council Work Session. The unanimous Council approval from that work session of the recommendations has led to the creation of the attached policy.
Staff recommend the adoption of Council Policy 160.09.2, which is the policy for residents to request “No Parking” in multi-use lanes in their neighborhoods.
Background:
History of recent “No Parking” policies:
• 08/23/2023 - Brunswick Road “No Parking” zone is enacted [Most recent “No Parking” zone]
• 06/02/2025 - Council requested staff develop a process for multi-use lanes “No Parking” requests
• 09/02/2025 - Staff presented “No Parking” information at Council Work Session
• 11/18/2025 - Staff presented Council Policy 160.09.2 to the City Council Policy Review Committee
• 11/24/2025 - Staff present process for residents to request “No Parking” in multi-use lanes for adoption
The City of Fayetteville does not have a defined policy for residents to request “No Parking” in neighborhoods with multi-use lanes. To-date, for “No Parking” to be applied, Council members were required to request “No Parking” on behalf of their constituents. After reviewing the location, staff would make a recommendation and pursuant to any discussion, a “No Parking” zone could be enacted. The most recent “No Parking” zone was Brunswick Road on August 23, 2023.
The City documents “No Parking” zones as part of traffic schedule Number 9 - Parking Prohibited. The ordinance which authorizes the traffic schedules, Chapter 16, Article III, Section 16-61, Traffic Schedules Adopted; City Manager Authorized to Compile. is attached to this agenda item as “16-61 Traffic Schedules.pdf”.
It was requested at the June 2, 2025 Council Work Session, prior to the presentation for Bicycle Lane Ordinance Clarifications and Recommendations, that staff provide a process for “No Parking” in multi-use lanes following a process similar to speed humps.
Staff presented File 25-4864 (attached to this agenda item) at the September 2, 2025 Council Work Session, which included a presentation (attached to this agenda item as “No Parking Presentation_20250902.pdf”) showing research and documentation behind recommendations for a potential policy. Staff requested guidance from Council based on the recommendations and information from the presentation. Council provided guidance through unanimous approval of the recommendations from the presentation and directed staff to return with a policy or ordinance allowing “No Parking” to be established in multi-use lanes.
Staff created Council Policy 160.09.2 in response to the recommendations from the presentation on September 2, 2025 and File 25-4864. This policy was presented to the City Council Policy Review Committee on September 18, 2025 where it was approved and recommended to proceed to the November 24, 2025 meeting for approval.
Issues/Analysis:
It was determined during the review and clarification surrounding bicycle lane ordinances that there is a desire by some communities to enact “No Parking” in multi-use lanes. Some communities may have used bicycle lanes as a de facto “No Parking” multi-use lane, however, with clarification of what is/is not permitted in bicycle lanes, defining a “No Parking” request process was requested.
Eight (8) municipalities were reviewed for their “No Parking” process. These municipalities are as follows: Apex, Concord, Durham, Greenville, High Point, Huntersville, Raleigh, Wilmington. More detail on the research behind the recommendations behind this policy can be found in File 25-4864, which was summarized in the presentation presented to Council on September 2, 2025. A short summary of our review of those eight (8) municipalities identified the following:
• 6 of 8 municipalities have a formal “No Parking” policy.
• While all allow “No Parking” to be requested for Safety Concerns, only 6 of 8 allow non-safety/resident requests to proceed.
• Signature thresholds vary between municipalities, ranging from 51% to 100%.
• 3 of 8 municipalities do not require Council approval to enact “No Parking” zones.
The recommendations for the policy are summarized below. These items are formalized in the “Residential Traffic Management Program: No Parking Request in Multi-Use Lanes” attachment and presented as City Council Policy number 160.09.2.
• “No Parking” can be requested by residents in multi-use lanes per this policy. “No Parking” in multi-use lanes for non-safety reasons will only be applied where residents request it and per this policy.
• “No Parking” will be evaluated on a block-by-block basis, to be measured from intersection to intersection. If the road ends (such as a cul-de-sac) then the “block” will be defined as the entire length of the multi-use lane. Evaluation areas will be applied to both sides of the road regardless of which side(s) “No Parking” is requested for.
• A signature threshold of 70% is required for “No Parking” to be approved in a multi-use lane. Signatures from owners, renters, tenants, etc. are valid. When in dispute, the owner’s signature overrides the renter/tenant. For multi-family properties, the units directly adjacent to the street receiving “No Parking” shall be counted for the number of signatures needed. Abandoned houses/vacant lots are excluded from the number of needed signatures but may be counted in support of a “No Parking” zone should a mailed ballot be returned or online petition be signed by the owner of the property. Should their status change, the contact person must request staff to review and re-solicit approval of the “No Parking” zone. Staff will be required to review each “No Parking” zone request in person to verify the property is not abandoned, or a vacant lot.
• Mailed ballot cards will be mailed to the “No Parking” area for signature approval. Signatures are required from both sides of the street, regardless of which side(s) “No Parking” is applied to. The signature threshold of 70% applies to both sides of the street and is measured independent of each other; The 70% signature threshold is not for the entire evaluation area, but for each side of the road.
• A “No Parking” request is valid for 60 calendar days from the day the mailed ballot cards are placed in the mail. A new request for “No Parking” will be entertained by staff upon request after six (6) months have elapsed from the most recent request for the subject evaluation area.
• A “No Parking” zone can be requested to be rescinded once it has been in place for one (1) year. It follows the same thresholds and signature process as above, to include deadlines. The difference between this mailed ballot card and the original mailed ballot card is this one will ask if the resident wishes to remove the “No Parking” zone instead of create one.
• All changes to “No Parking” zones will be submitted to the next available Council Regular session for approval and amendment into the Traffic Schedule.
While we serve at the pleasure of Council and City Manager, staff do have two main concerns which are identified as follows:
• Without knowing resident interest in the program, the funding requirement and staff time is unknown at this time when considering the following:
o Time and materials necessary for this program, to include but not be limited to the following:
§ Staff time visiting proposed “No Parking” zones
§ Costs for fabricating and sending mailers/ballots
§ Staff time validating the returned mailer/ballot signatures
§ Staff time for updating Council with the necessary information to update the traffic schedule
§ Costs for fabricating metal signs and the purchase of signposts
§ Costs and staff time for installation of “No Parking” sign assemblies in “No Parking” zones
o Staff becoming involved in neighborhood civil disputes. While staff are cognizant of residents desires for “No Parking” citing safety concerns and ordinance violations, disagreements between neighbors may escalate.
Should the policy be adopted, staff will work to roll-out the process online and begin preparing materials. When preparation work is complete, staff will coordinate with other City Departments and Council to inform the public of this new policy.
Budget Impact:
This item discusses starting a new policy to address an unknown amount of resident demand for “No Parking” zones across City neighborhoods. The impact on the budget is unknown at this time.
Options:
1) Adopt Council Policy 160.09.2 - The Process for Residents to Request “No Parking” in Multi-Use Lanes.
2) Decline Council Policy 160.09.2 and return to staff with direction.
Recommended Action::Recommended Action
1) Adopt Council Policy 160.09.2 - The Process for Residents to Request “No Parking” in Multi-Use Lanes.
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Attachments:
Council Policy 160.09.2.pdf
File 25-4864.pdf
No Parking Presentation_20250902.pdf
16-61 Traffic Schedules.pdf
Other Municipalities Policies.pdf