Common Council overrides mayor's veto; overnight alternate side parking rules end in District 4

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Residents in one Milwaukee neighborhood can now park on any side of the street overnight. The Common Council voted unanimously Tuesday morning to remove alternate side parking rules in District 4.

Half of District 4 has always been exempt from alternate side parking rules, including downtown and the east side. The new rules now make the entire district exempt from overnight alternate side parking rules.

For the last five years, for Katherine Ricketts, it's been a race to get a parking sport in her Concordia neighborhood after work.

“Terrible. Very terrible,” said Ricketts. “Even down there and down the next block. There’s nowhere to park, so you have to try to get home early to get a parking place because at night, I just don’t go anywhere at night because there's no parking place.”

She’s gotten the parking tickets to prove it.

“About at least 10. About 10,” said Ricketts.

Now, that’s no longer a problem for Ricketts – or anyone in District 4.

“Yeah, I’m pleased because I think it’ll bring significant relief to a lot of my constituents,” said District 4 Ald. Bob Bauman.

Bauman proposed removing alternate side parking rules for his district in June. Residents would no longer have to overnight park on the even side of the street on even days of the week and the odd side of the street on odd days.

“It’s been on the books for 50 years and it’s kinda obsolete and arcane, back when there were far fewer vehicles around,” said Bauman.

The legislation passed unanimously but hit a roadblock. Mayor Cavalier Johnson vetoed it, citing the need for a Department of Public Works study. Tuesday morning, the council voted to override the mayor’s veto.

“We made it the whole district rather than a street-by-street approach, which is really hard for people to decipher,” said Bauman.

CBS 58 reached out to Johnson’s office for a statement. His office simply said, "The veto message speaks for itself.”

As for Ricketts, she says she’s just got two words to describe this change.

“That’s wonderful,” said Ricketts.