This is a wonderful example of people abusing a freedom, becoming a nuisance, and then getting the government involved, who comes up with a solution that pleases nobody except some special interest who has to be operating behind the scenes. And of course, it leads to the creation of new $15 permits. The $15 permits administered by the police department looks like a creative way to drive enforcement. So who is going to be breaking ground on RV storage facilities as I’d bet they are behind this “solution” which will be lucrative for someone. Consequently, people shouldn’t buy RVs they can’t store on their property with minimal alteration whether cement strips, pavers or some gravel… A lot of people barely use them and they’re not well maintained, and I wonder if they’re still financing them and unable to unload them.
Despite vocal — and at times emotional — opposition, Cheyenne City Council on Monday passed a ban on parking huge RVs and other “oversized” vehicles on city streets. The only exceptions are during the summer months or with a permit.
By Leo Wolfson
CHEYENNE — Despite vocal opposition from the public, the Cheyenne City Council went ahead and banned large RVs and other “oversized” vehicles from parking on city streets, which would be considered a “nuisance.”
The council did, however, make an exception lifting the ban during summer months. Council members also created a new temporary permit that allows for the parking of oversized vehicles for up to five days on city streets.
The ban has no impact on the parking of RVs and other oversized vehicles on private property.
The ordinance passed during the council’s meeting Monday night on an 8-2 vote with council members Bryan Cook and Pete Laybourn voting against it.
Council member Michelle Aldrich called the approved ordinance a work in progress, but a necessary compromise to alleviate the issue.
“I believe it’s a good start and for that reason I’ll be supporting it this evening because something is better than nothing,” she said.
Former council member Georgia Broyles took responsibility for the current oversized vehicle ordinance on the books, calling it a compromise that pushed people to park their vehicles in front of their property instead of wherever they wanted to.
She said the parking of oversized vehicles on city streets was one of the most common complaints brought to her attention when she was on the council from 2007-2014. Broyles said the ordinance passed Monday was the third attempt to restrict RV parking on city streets in the last 25-to-30 years in Cheyenne.
Council member Scott Roybal has been on the council for 13 years, including a stint in the late 1990s. Roybal said an RV ban was also considered in 1998, but died on a 5-5 vote when then-Mayor Leo Pando said he wanted to study the issue more.
Since that time, Roybal said he’s received much more public pressure about the issue and RVs themselves have gotten much larger. Also, when the issue was discussed in 1998, he said there were many more RV proponents who spoke than on Monday.
“It seems like there are more people tuned into RVs parked on the street now,” Roybal said.
Past attempts were not as enforceable as the ordinance that passed Monday, Broyles said.
“There isn’t room as we continue to grow our city for everybody to keep bringing in the recreation vehicles, but it isn’t just them, it’s the oversized vehicles as well,” Broyles said. “We’d like to see it accomplished this go-around.”
How It Went Down
Nearly all of the roughly 10 people who spoke Monday railed against the ban, many reiterating their perspectives multiple times each.
The council indicated they didn’t believe this group of people represented the views of the larger populace on the topic of parking large RVs on city streets.
Concerns about public safety were the biggest reason given for passingthe ban with a number of people telling anecdotal stories about large vehicles blocking valuable public space for months on end and causing accidents by blocking views.
Cheyenne resident Jon Puls said the council needs to deal with the ongoing problems in the city first before passing a new law.
“It’s not just affecting your community, it’s affecting the people in it,” Puls said.
Puls, who parks large work vehicles outside his home, said Roybal has threatened him on this issue. Puls shared a Facebook comment Roybal made to him where the council member referred to Puls’ property as “Amsterdam,” and also told him “I am turning your ass in.”
Puls said he now plans to sell his home next spring because of Roybal’s comments.
Roybal told Cowboy State Daily he could have been more diplomatic with his comments but was referring to what he saw as an egregious amount of work vehicles and equipment parked on the street outside Puls’ home and Puls’ private property, calling the property a bit of an “urban legend.”
“It’s really serious, I feel bad for his neighbors,” Roybal said.
Compromise
The council passed an amendment to the ordinance by a 7-3 vote, allowing people to park their RVs without any limits during the summer months five days before Memorial Day through five days after Labor Day.
This compromise did little pacify those in attendance.
Puls said he pays taxes for the purpose of parking his RV on the street. He said the exception might help people who travel a lot, but does nothing to assist “the working man,” mentioning how he works 365 days a year from his home.
“I can’t even park in front of my own home?” he questioned.
Broyles also opposed the amendment, saying the summer allowance will only cause confusion about when street RV parking is allowed and fail to protect the busiest time of the year for pedestrian foot traffic and bike riding.
“I think it’s important to go year-round,” she said.
The width of vehicles covered by the ordinance was also expanded during the meeting by 1.5 feet. Now, “Oversized vehicle” shall mean any vehicle or any combination of vehicles which exceeds twenty-five 25 feet in length, 8.5 feet in width or 9 feet in height.
Resident David Cook argued that these size restrictions still hinder people from parking their work vehicles outside their homes.
“If somebody has that kind of truck, what are they going to do, get a permit to go to work?” Cook questioned. “Now we’re getting a permit to just do your life here in Cheyenne.”
State Rep.-elect Lee Filer, R-Cheyenne, said the RV ordinance amounts to a government overreach, mentioning how a number of his work trucks would be designated as out of compliance under the nuisance ordinance.
“I think we’re drawing a line here that says you can or cannot work in the city of Cheyenne,” Filer said.
Council member Ken Esquibel countered, saying the ordinance does nothing to prevent people from parking their vehicles on their own property.
The compromise also removed a previous exemption allowing people to park their oversized vehicles on the street for up to 72 hours.
Temporary Parking Permits
As part of the compromise, temporary use parking permits will also be available for purchase at a cost of $15, which would allow a person to park their RV or oversized vehicle on a public roadway for up to five days. These permits would have to be approved by the Cheyenne Police Department.
Ward I council member Jeff White spoke in favor of this piece of the compromise, saying it brings to the table “something folks could live with.”
Aldrich disagreed and said the temporary permits fail to satisfy both people who want or oppose the RV ordinance.
“For that reason, I’m not in support of the substitute,” she said.
Cheyenne Assistant Public Works Director Vicki Nemecek disagreed, saying that’s a good thing.
“Everyone’s a little unhappy and everyone’s a little happy,” she said.
Aldrich suggested her own amendment, getting rid of the summer exemption while retaining the temporary permit proposal. She said that safety is her biggest concern with the parking of oversized vehicles.
“I don’t see how making this a nine-month only ordinance is actually going to be the safest for our community,” she said.
Council member Tom Segrave agreed, saying only a year-round ban would make the ordinance effective.
Filer spoke against this proposal too, calling it more restrictive than the compromise and particularly harmful to outdoors enthusiasts. Tom Fuller agreed, saying it would be equitable to a year-round RV ban anyway.
“It’s not the safety on the street, it’s more of a viewshed issue,” Fuller said.
Aldrich’s amendment failed on a 5-5 vote.
The Need
Most people who spoke in opposition on Monday acknowledged that there are at least a few bad apples parked around town driving attention to the issue, but some requested a study to see exactly how many RVs would be impacted by the ordinance.
“If you’re going to call safety, then give me some damn statistics on it,” Joe McCord said.
Others warned that people will get priced out from owning or buying RVs or even large trucks as a result of the ordinance because they will now need to pay to keep their vehicles in storage because of a lack of space on their own private property.
Esquibel said after contacting six storage lots in Cheyenne, a total of 450 RVs were identified as already parked there. Resident Reese Johnston said after calling around 15 RV storage lots on Monday morning, she found the majority of facilities are already full.
Johnston said the summer exemption still won’t eliminate the cost to have to store her RV during the winter months, a predicament she believes will also fall on many Cheyenne residents and thus drive up prices at the storage lots.
“I’m very concerned that need is going to drive pricing up for some of this,” she said.
Others expressed concern that the purchase of these permits would hinder them from being able to afford hunting and fishing permits.
Some also said the police won’t be able to effectively enforce the ordinance, but Esquibel said it would be strictly complaint driven.
Jeff Kling said he uses his RV year-round for various purposes and chooses to park it in front of his house to keep an eye on the vehicle.
“Consider those people who use their trailer year-round,” Kling urged the council.
The ordinance will go into effect Sept. 7, 2025.
“We want to give people time to figure out what they want to do about their vehicles,” Roybal said.