Chapter 10.12
PARKING
Sections:
10.12.010 Violation – Penalty.
10.12.011 Violation – Delinquent fee.
10.12.017 Violation – Impoundment.
10.12.018 Impounds authorized in addition to RCW 46.55.113.
10.12.019 Redemption and post-impoundment procedures.
10.12.020 State statutes – Adopted.
10.12.025 State definitions – Adopted.
10.12.030 Restricted parking – Alley parking.
10.12.040 Restricted parking – Rural-type and residential-type mailboxes.
10.12.050 Restricted parking – Fire hydrants, fire facilities/lanes and fire trucks.
10.12.060 Unlawful to park unlicensed or mechanically inoperable vehicles and trailers.
10.12.070 Commercial and recreational vehicle parking.
10.12.090 Temporary traffic determinations.
Prior legislation: Prior code § 10-202 and Ords. 1263, 1446, 1449, 1798, 1942, 1968, 2317, 2452, 2468 and 2478.
10.12.005 Exception.
This chapter shall not apply to emergency vehicles including, but not limited to, firefighting apparatus, police vehicles and other emergency response vehicles and equipment being used in the course of lawful duty. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.010 Violation – Penalty.
Any person convicted or found to have committed a violation under this section which is a civil infraction shall be punished by a standard fine of not less than $75.00 for each count or incident, unless otherwise specified. This standard fine amount and any otherwise specified fine amounts may be adjusted by the city as needed in its periodic amendments to its unified fee schedule. Each day that the violation continues to exist shall be treated as a separate count or incident. The standard penalty shall apply to all violations of this chapter and any parking provisions of the Model Traffic Code adopted by the city, in this or any other section of this code, except where specified otherwise. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2998 § 1 (Exh. A), 2023; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.011 Violation – Delinquent fee.
There shall be a penalty of $25.00 for failure to respond to a notice of traffic infraction, pursuant to, and as authorized by, RCW 46.63.110(4), herein adopted. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.015 Violation – Notice.
Repealed by Ord. 2998. (Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.016 Violation – Impound.
Repealed by Ord. 2998. (Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.017 Violation – Impoundment.
Except as specifically provided to the contrary, the provisions of Chapter 46.55 RCW are incorporated into this chapter and apply to the towing and impoundment of motor vehicles. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit any officer’s authority to impound a vehicle for other lawful reasons as provided by law. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024)
10.12.018 Impounds authorized in addition to RCW 46.55.113.
In addition to the impound situations that are authorized pursuant to RCW 46.55.113, a police officer may take custody of a vehicle, or direct a registered tow truck operator to take custody of a vehicle, and provide for its prompt removal to a place of safety under the following circumstances:
A. When the vehicle is impeding or is likely to impede the normal flow of vehicular or pedestrian traffic; or
B. When the vehicle is illegally occupying a truck, commercial load zone, bus, loading, taxi, or other similar zone where, by order of the director of public works or chief of police or fire, parking is limited to designated classes of vehicles or is prohibited during certain hours on designated days or at all times, and where such vehicle is interfering with the proper and intended use of such zones; or
C. When a vehicle is parked in a public right-of-way or on publicly owned or controlled property in violation of any law, ordinance, or regulation and there are four or more parking infractions issued against the vehicle for each of which a person has failed to respond, failed to appear at a requested hearing, or failed to pay an adjudicated parking infraction for at least 45 days from the date of the filing of the notice of infraction. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024)
10.12.019 Redemption and post-impoundment procedures.
A. Redemption. Vehicles impounded pursuant to BMC 10.12.017 may be redeemed pursuant to the same provisions and requirements of BMC 10.08.050, 10.08.060, 10.08.070, 10.08.080, 10.08.090 and 10.08.100.
B. Notice of Right to Hearing. For vehicles impounded pursuant to BMC 10.12.017, there shall be notice given for the right to a hearing pursuant to BMC 10.08.110.
C. Impoundment Hearing. Any person who is authorized by this chapter to redeem an impounded vehicle, and who is seeking to redeem such impounded vehicle, has a right to a hearing in the Blaine municipal court to contest the validity of the impoundment or the amount of towing and storage charges. The procedure for requesting a hearing and for the hearing itself shall be pursuant to BMC 10.08.120.
D. Disposal of Impounded Vehicle Not Claimed. Any impounded abandoned vehicle or item of personal property registered or titled with the Department of Licensing that is not redeemed within 15 days of mailing of the notice of custody and sale as required by RCW 46.55.110(3) shall be sold at public auction in accordance with all the provisions and subject to all the conditions of RCW 46.55.130. A vehicle or item of personal property registered or titled with the Department of Licensing may be redeemed at any time before the start of the auction upon payment of the applicable towing and storage fees. (See RCW 46.55.120(4).) (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024)
10.12.020 State statutes – Adopted.
The city of Blaine specifically adopts the following portions of the Revised Code of Washington, as applies to parking violations, except as to amounts for penalties:
RCW
46.19.050 Restrictions – Prohibitions – Violation – Penalties (regarding parking and persons with disabilities)
46.61.570 Stopping, standing, or parking prohibited in specified places — Reserving portion of highway prohibited
46.61.575 Additional parking regulations
46.61.581 Parking spaces for persons with disabilities – Indication, access – Failure, penalty
46.61.590 Unattended motor vehicle – Removal from highway
46.61.600 Unattended motor vehicle
The penalty for violating any of the above shall be as set in BMC 10.12.010, except any violation involving a disability parking space for which the penalties are set forth under RCW 46.19.050. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.025 State definitions – Adopted.
Undefined terms or words in this chapter shall have the definitions as provided in Chapter 46.04 RCW as adopted and amended herein. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.030 Restricted parking – Alley parking.
No person shall park a vehicle within an alley in such a manner or under such conditions as to leave available less than eight feet of the width of the roadway for the free movement of vehicular traffic, and no person shall stop, stand or park a vehicle within an alley in such position as to block the driveway entrance to any abutting property. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.040 Restricted parking – Rural-type and residential-type mailboxes.
Except as may be momentarily required in order to actually deliver or collect mail, it is unlawful to stop, stand or park any vehicle in front of, or within 20 feet laterally of, U.S. Postal Service mailboxes of either the rural-type (horizontally mounted, nonlocking boxes) or residential cluster-type (pedestal mounted, stacked, and either locking or nonlocking) during the normal delivery hours of 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.050 Restricted parking – Fire hydrants, fire facilities/lanes and fire trucks.
A. It is unlawful to stop, stand or park any vehicle in front of, or within 20 feet laterally of, a fire hydrant or other water outlet used for firefighting at any time.
B. It is unlawful to stop, stand or park any vehicle in front of, or within 100 feet laterally of, a fire-fighting truck involved, directly or indirectly, in the fighting of a fire.
C. It is unlawful to stop, stand, or park any vehicle within clearly marked areas in front of and contiguous to fire department facilities or marked fire lanes. Those prohibited areas shall be marked in red, clearly delineating the prohibited zones. In addition, signs shall be posted at either end of the prohibitive zone indicating the prohibition and the fine for parking therein.
D. A violation of this chapter shall have an initial fine of $450.00. This fine amount may be adjusted by the city as needed in its periodic amendments to its unified fee schedule. The second and additional violations are a warrantable gross misdemeanor with a forfeitable bail amount of $1,000. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.060 Unlawful to park unlicensed or mechanically inoperable vehicles and trailers.
A. It shall be unlawful for any person to stand or park any vehicle or trailer that is unlicensed or not currently licensed with the state on any city street, city parking lot, alley, city right-of-way, and all public property.
B. It shall be unlawful for any person to stand or park any vehicle or trailer that is extensively damaged to the extent that it has a broken window or windshield, or missing wheels, tires, motor or transmission or is not equipped with any equipment required for operation on public highways as contained in Chapter 46.37 RCW and pertinent sections of the WAC, on any highway, city street, city parking lot, alley, city right-of-way, and all public property. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.070 Commercial and recreational vehicle parking.
A. It is unlawful to park a commercial motor truck, truck tractor, truck trailer or semi-trailer on public property or streets within residentially zoned areas in the city. A recreational vehicle may be parked within a residentially zoned area for no longer than 24 hours.
B. It is unlawful to park or store a commercial vehicle, motor truck, truck tractor, truck trailer, semi-trailer, or recreational vehicle in any one place on any city street for more than 24 consecutive hours.
C. It is unlawful to park or store a commercial vehicle, motor truck, truck tractor, truck trailer, semi-trailer, or recreational vehicle within the central business district between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.
D. No person shall move any type of vehicle, motor truck, truck tractor, semi-trailer, trailer or recreational vehicle from one parking space back to the same parking space or to another parking space within the same block on the same street for the purpose of evading or avoiding a time limitation on parking therein.
E. No person shall erase or obliterate, for the purpose of interfering with checking for overtime parking, a chalk mark or other identifying mark placed on the tire or tires of a parked vehicle by a police officer or other authorized person.
F. The director of public works or chief of police is authorized to limit the hours of truck parking on certain streets, to prohibit truck parking entirely on some streets, such as H Street, but not limited thereto, and to designate certain areas of public property and roadways for truck parking. This may be done on a permanent, temporary or seasonal basis. Such actions may be taken by either the director of public works or the chief of police after consultation with each other and with the concurrence of the city manager. Such parking restrictions shall be enforceable after proper signs and markings are installed. The second and additional violations of such posted limitations are a warrantable misdemeanor with a forfeitable bail amount of $250.00.
G. The provisions of this section shall not abrogate the general law enforcement and community caretaking powers of police officers engaged in the mitigation of an immediate public safety problem.
H. For purposes of this title, “residentially zoned areas” are those rights-of-way within, or which create a boundary for, a land use district that includes single-family residential dwellings as a permitted use. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2963 § 1, 2021; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.080 Time limitations.
A. The director of public works or chief of police is authorized to administratively determine and post signs pertaining to parking date, hour or length of time limits for any type of automobile, truck, vehicle, recreational vehicle or trailer on property within the city’s jurisdiction, including but not limited to city streets, rights-of-way, off-street parking, and other city-owned property. This may be done on a permanent, temporary or seasonal basis. Such actions may be taken by either the director of public works or the chief of police after consultation with each other and with the concurrence of the city manager. When signs are posted establishing such limits, it is a violation to exceed such parking limitations.
B. Notwithstanding the above, it shall be unlawful to park or store an automobile, truck, vehicle, or trailer in one place on any city street for more than 48 consecutive hours at a time unless otherwise posted, or specified in this chapter.
C. Notwithstanding the above, there shall be no parking of any commercial motor truck, truck tractor, truck trailer, semi-trailer, or recreational vehicle in any city-owned parking lots between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2963 § 1, 2021; Ord. 2817 § 2 (Exh. A), 2012)
10.12.090 Temporary traffic determinations.
A. The director of public works or chief of police shall have the authority to exercise regulatory authority under BMC 10.12.070 and 10.12.080 without meeting any consultation or concurrence requirements when either determines that such regulation requires immediate implementation in the interest of public safety and general welfare. Such regulations shall only be effective for seven days. (Ord. 3013 § 2 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. 2963 § 1, 2021)