Newton's Public Safety & Transportation Committee will consider changing the city's overnight parking ban at a Wednesday, August 5 meeting, the first formal committee action since a working group delivered unanimous recommendations for winter trials on July 24.

The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at City Hall, Room 205. Residents can also join via Zoom. According to Fig City News, the committee may take straw votes on trial changes to the winter ban.

The ban, in place since 1930, prohibits parking on any Newton public road from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. between Dec. 1 and March 31. Violations carry a $25 fine.

Newton voters narrowly rejected a full repeal of the ban in November 2025, with 10,894 voting to keep it and 10,823 voting to scrap it.

What the working group recommended

A seven-person working group spent eight months studying the issue and presented a 58-page report to the committee on July 24. The group included former city councilor Chris Markiewicz, Peter Klapes from the repeal campaign, and Howard Rosenof from the keep camp.

The group unanimously agreed on seven recommendations, including expanded disability protections, streamlined exception requests, and implementing any changes as time-limited trials rather than permanent policy shifts.

"If you want to do this, you will need to actually create an ordinance, and the group was unanimous in saying you should take that formal step," Markiewicz said at the July 24 committee meeting, urging councilors to codify changes into law.

Disability access was a central focus. Under the current system, anyone needing a disability exception must win approval from the traffic council. The working group proposed two alternatives: exempting all vehicles with disability placards, or letting the police department and ADA coordinator handle exceptions directly.

The group also recommended the council pilot trial areas in Oak Hill Park, Thompsonville, and Chestnut Hill, neighborhoods where few municipal lots sit within walking distance.

What's at stake

Tarik Lucas, a Ward 2 councilor-at-large who chaired the committee earlier this year, said in March that any changes should be made "very carefully." The committee has rejected parking ban changes multiple times, including a 21-vote majority to deny a repeal petition and a 22-vote majority against shortening the ban's dates.

Whether Wednesday's session produces straw votes or remains a discussion is unclear. The official agenda lists "discussion and ordinance change," while Fig City News reported the committee would take straw votes on trial changes.

Residents who want to weigh in can attend in person at City Hall, Room 205, or join via Zoom. The link is available on the city's meeting agenda. The meeting starts at 7 p.m.