COUNTY News:
Los Alamos County Code Enforcement Officers will begin assisting Los Alamos Police Department patrols in tagging or towing unhitched trailers parked on streets, highways and public parking areas, under new changes to the County code that took effect Feb. 10.
The County Council recently approved a change in wording to Chapter 38 of the Traffic & Vehicles Section of the Code (Section 38-367), to address inadequate parking regulations that have in the past allowed trailers in these public areas as long as the trailer was hitched to a vehicle for at least 24 hours. The amended ordinance removed the 24-hour “grace period.”
An unhitched trailer is defined by Code as a trailer not physically connected to an operable vehicle. Past offenders have skirted the ordinance by attaching a trailer for 24-hour periods to avoid citations, and then unhitching the trailer to remain on the street. Removing the time interval will allow the County to begin addressing this problem area in the community. The ordinance change was unanimously adopted by the Council Jan. 5.
During the month of February, Code Enforcement Officers will first work with LAPD on complaints that were filed before the ordinance took effect, to address problem areas of the community where unhitched trailers have been a persistent and chronic issue for several years, and then Code Enforcement Officers will continue to “red tag” and report to LAPD on other unhitched trailers as they work their way through Los Alamos and White Rock.
“This is a fairly long-standing issue that has been a frequent area of complaints for a variety of reasons ranging from sight distance issues, public safety access issues, parking on sidewalks or on narrow streets that make it difficult for two-way traffic to maneuver safely, or just for the aesthetics of having pull campers or trailers parked in front of homes for years – as compared to placing these kinds of vehicles in an appropriate storage lot designed for that purpose,” Community Development Director Paul Andrus said.
Andrus added that the Council requested the change to the code as part of management action plans being implemented to address goals to eliminate blight in the community.
Citizens wishing to register a complaint about an unhitched trailer in their neighborhood are asked to fill out an on-line form and include the address or location along with a photo (preferably showing a license plate and/or VIN number on the trailer). The form can be found at www.losalamosnm.us/cdd/Pages/CodeEnforcement.aspx. Although enforcement resides with LAPD, the remainder of the work is being tracked through CDD and Code Enforcement, using their new EnerGov software.
Andrus stressed that the goal is to ask owners first to come into compliance with the changes in code, not have LAPD issue citations before contacting and working with owners to voluntarily remove the unhitched trailers in a timely manner.
“As with all code enforcement items, we want to work with the community. Our intent is not to be punitive and ask LAPD to cite people immediately and send them to court,” Andrus said, adding that in most code enforcement situations, owners simply may not be aware that they are violating the code and once alerted, will responsibly take action to correct the situation.
Andrus expects that to be the case here, especially given education about the change that will be available on tagged trailers and with additional public outreach – with few cases being referred to the legal system to resolve non-compliance.
LAPD Commander Oliver Morris agreed with Andrus, stating that LAPD wants to work with residents to address the problem of unhitched trailers.
“Our goal is to obtain compliance from citizens with the new County ordinance, prior to enforcement action. If a parking violation is not an immediate public safety issue, officers will attempt to contact the owner prior to the issuance of the citation. However, the Los Alamos Police Department will be working with Code Enforcement to address this issue in a proactive manner,” Morris said.
Options are available to owners – they can move the trailer onto their private property, although depending upon lot size and shape, the trailer must be parked in a back yard or side yard if space permits; otherwise, it can be stored in a front yard. There are also storage rental lots set aside for this purpose, such as the lot on North Mesa. Lots in nearby communities also offer storage space for rent, Andrus said.
Residents with unhitched trailers who have questions can call the Community Development office at 662-8120 and ask to speak to a Code Enforcement Officer, who can arrange to meet and review their property for options to legally store the trailers on-site. Contact information will also be included on any red tagged trailers and Code Enforcement Officers will be logging and then following up on tagged vehicles over the next few weeks.
