A recent change in overnight curbside parking rules at the Eagle Ridge residential development, located just off Santa Clara Boulevard and Highway 152 in Gilroy, has left one resident irate.
The upscale community, which boasts a golf course and clubhouse, has brought new parking regulations into effect. The recent edict from the Eagle Ridge Home Owners Association states that only one car can be parked outside, and it must move every 24 hours.
“I feel that this is harassment,” fumed Eagle Ridge resident Claudia Otero. “I am deeply bothered that I have to move my car a few feet forward or backward so my car won’t be towed from right outside my own home.”
President Rob Hyde of the Eagle Ridge Home Owners Association disagrees with Otero’s assessment.
“The Community’s parking rules and enforcement are a result of homeowners’ expressions of concern,” he said. “We are proud of our community and respond to the desires of our homeowners.”
As residents adjust to the parking rules, Marx Towing from Gilroy stands ready to enforce the new regulations.
“There was a brief surge of towing at Eagle Ridge for awhile, but we haven’t towed anything out of there for several weeks now,” said one employee Tuesday.
The new regulations are the end product of extensive work between the Eagle Ridge Board and the homeowners, Hyde explained. He said it took several months – and several stages of drafting – to come up with the new enforcement code.
According to Otero, the upscale neighborhood was recently covered in yellow lines made by Eagle Ridge security employees chalking tires to check car movement. Having an Eagle Ridge windshield permit and paying monthly dues doesn’t make any difference, added Otero.
“They are going overboard trying to control who parks on the streets,” she said. “Aren’t the streets still public places?”
Other streets may be public places, but – apart from the short stretch from the welcome gate to the golf course – not the streets in Eagle Ridge.
The Eagle Ridge Homeowners Association is responsible for all of the upkeep of the streets, confirmed Hyde.
The Gilroy Police Department doesn’t patrol the residential streets, either. That job is performed by Eagle Ridge security.
According to Hyde, Otero had plenty of time to bring her concerns to the attention of the Board. Implementation of enforcement was delayed for several months to allow time to “provide ample notification to our homeowners,” he said.
Hyde explained that the Board had initiated a media blitz to make sure the message about parking got out. This included Board meetings – which are open to homeowners via the Brown Act of 1953 – message boards located at the entrance to the development and even the occasional phone call.
“If they asked for public comment at the meetings, I don’t remember seeing it,” said Otero.
Otero concedes that she may have missed out on direct contact from the Board since she isn’t listed as the owner of the house – her fiancé is – but as far as she’s aware, her fiancé hadn’t attended any parking meetings, either.
