By the time you read this, the problem will have disappeared, at least temporarily. 

Wednesday, June 4 was the last day of school for seniors at Barrington High School. And on Thursday, June 5, the student parking lot which was overflowing with cars for the entire school year, was not nearly as crowded.

The newfound space in the lot meant, among other things, that some high school students would not be searching for parking on streets near the school campus, especially along Tiffany Circle, Priscilla Drive and Cherry Lane. 

At the recent Barrington Town Council meeting, some residents called for a remedy to the parking issue on streets near the high school — they said the situation was unsafe and needed to be addressed.

Councilor Liana Cassar said the problem would solve itself in two weeks, referring to the upcoming end of the school year. She said the summer break would allow the various stakeholders time to meet and find a permanent solution. 

After about an hour of discussion, council members voted to table a proposed ordinance that would have limited parking on streets near the high school to three-hour windows. The council will revisit the issue at its July meeting, and is also expected to discuss a resident-only parking sticker program.

Parking pinch

At the June 2 council meeting, Barrington Police Chief Michael Correia shared some background about the parking issue near the high school.

He said this year’s senior class is a particularly large one. Combined with some juniors who already have their licenses, student vehicles outnumber student parking spots in the lot. Chief Correia said some students began parking on the side of Priscilla Road, at the end of Cherry Lane and in a small municipal lot located near the weight throwing circle off Upland Way. 

Chief Correia said he thought the police department could solve the problem with some persuasion — local officials asked students to refrain from parking in the problem areas. But that approach did not work. So Chief Correia reached out to the pastor at the Barrington Presbyterian Church, who agreed to let students park in the church lot (it abuts the Tiffany Circle neighborhood). 

That agreement helped ease the parking situation, but Chief Correia said he still believes some type of parking regulation is needed. 

“It’s a safety issue,” Chief Correia said. 

The chief said a timed parking regulation would solve the problem and would not be a burden to the police department. 

Council president Braxton Cloutier asked how the timed parking ordinance would impact residents who have visitors who park on the side of the road. Chief Correia said there is room for discretion, adding that discretion is a hallmark of policing in America. 

Councilor Kerry O’Neill asked if standing (vehicles with drivers, idling in place) would be a violation to the proposed parking ordinance. Chief Correia said it all depends on how the ordinance was written. He added that he did not want the police department to be viewed as a revenue agent. 

Chief Correia also dispelled the idea of widespread carpooling among students to address the parking issue. He said the graduated licenses for new drivers restrict them from driving with numerous unrelated people in the vehicle. 

Kate Berard said the parking problem was really a school problem. She also had concerns about next year, as the school construction project could cut into the available parking spaces at BHS. Berard called for resident only parking stickers for people living near the high school. She also suggested the town consider prohibiting parking near the intersection of Tiffany Circle and Lincoln Avenue, as a means to improve safety. 

Cassar said the town should not depend on the police department to solve this problem. She called for officials to find a way to incentivize other modes of transportation for Barrington High School students — carpooling, biking, walking and more. 

Cassar said the town needs to include all parties in a discussion to solve this parking pinch. 

Neighbors’ needs

A handful of people who live near the high school attended the June 2 meeting. Most of those who spoke complained about the current parking situation, cited dangerous incidents in the past, and asked councilors to do something.

Sham Ganglani spoke about parking equity. He said there was a large track and field meet recently where cars filled the small parking lot on Upland Way, lined the street, and covered some of a nearby field. He asked why that should be allowed, but students could not park in the Upland Way lot. 

James Peluso recounted a harrowing encounter involving his young son who was walking home from the bus stop and an inexperienced high school driver. 

“At the end of the day, we’re talking about children’s lives,” Peluso said. He also asked that officials consider implementing some traffic safety features. 

Another resident told councilors that years ago his daughter and her friends had been struck by a student driver while walking near the school. Luckily, he added, no one was seriously injured. He asked if councilors were going to wait until someone was killed before the community did something. He also suggested a lottery system for parking passes for students. 

Barrington Police Captain Kevin Igoe said there is already a parking pass lottery for all juniors at Barrington High School. He added that without an ordinance, there is not much the police department can do with students who wish to park on the side streets. 

Joe Paradis, Catherine Nellis, Anna Aguiar and other residents who live in the Tiffany Circle/Priscilla Drive neighborhood said the on-street parking presents an unsafe situation for residents, pedestrians, students and others. 

Tom Rimoshytus suggested the council consider restricting parking to one side of the road near the high school, and also prohibit parking near the intersection. Berard endorsed the restricted parking approach, but O’Neill was worried that the change could result in some other unforeseen issue. 

Parking stickers

After the discussion shifted back to the council, Cassar said officials should be engaging with the school department and others in an effort to find a solution. Cassar called for a working session. 

Barrington Town Manager Phil Hervey said there are a few streets in town where parking is restricted to residents only, at certain times of the day and for certain months. Some councilors seemed interested in that approach, and assistant town solicitor Amy Goins suggested that the council could introduce this new ordinance at its June 10 meeting. 

Cloutier then made a motion to continue the public hearing to the July council meeting. Berard seconded the motion, which passed 5-0.