The Denver City Council passed a bill updating Denver’s parking enforcement code Monday.

District 9 Councilwoman Candi CdeBaca was the only “no” vote, but she said it was not because she disagrees with District 7 Councilman Jolon Clark’s efforts to update the code. 

The changes will more effectively manage turnover and curbside access in high demand areas, according city documents. One major aspect of the bill brings much more stringent requirements for moving large vehicles like semi-trucks and campers as well as so-called “junkers.” The city now requires they be moved 700 feet, up from 100 feet.

CdeBaca said the new requirements were unrealistic and not helpful for those people who must live in their vehicles and have no easy way to move them. 

“This is a huge issue in my neighborhood, and I don’t think this ordinance is particularly solving the problem,” CdeBaca said. “The right of way enforcement capacity feels like it is the biggest issue, not necessarily the lack of an ordinance. Perhaps we shouldn’t be trying to focus our limited resources on the enforcement of an ordinance like this when we don’t have a humane place to send people or even just a safe place for people to park.”

Clark highlighted the community process that went into creating the bill. An original vote was scheduled for a previous council meeting, but got delayed so people could ask questions about it. 

That proved critical, according to Clark, as several items were flagged for clarification or correction. Some “common sense” rules were added as well as provisions that made it harder to weaponize enforcement of said rules, Clark said. 

“There were places where we had inadvertently caught up the folks who park in Cap Hill or somebody who is home from college. We wrapped in a whole bunch of vehicles that we never intended to,” he said. “We were able to go in and not just fix that piece that was unintended, but also make parking for all of those people a whole lot better.”