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After hundreds complain, big parking change coming for Avalon Park

By Angela Jacobs, WFTV.com
By Angela Jacobs, WFTV.com
After hundreds of complaints and delayed emergency services trying to navigate narrow streets in Avalon Park, Orange County officials have decided to make a big parking change for the area.
Currently, vehicles can park on either side of the street, which can cause the already narrow road to become impassible for larger vehicles.
In December 2016, Russ Mozier was suffering a heart attack and emergency personnel were delayed for a few minutes because their vehicles couldn’t get through the street to his home.
“(They) blew their horn, blew their sirens, (but) couldn’t wake anybody up,” Mozier said.
Avalon Park resident Nivea Akpore said the problem affects the entire neighborhood.
“It’s just every street … no matter where you go,” she said.
Akpore is renting a home in Avalon Park and said she loves the area, but is having second thoughts about ever buying a property because of the parking issue.
“When you have one (vehicle) parked on the side, there’s no way,” she said. “Somebody has to stop and then it’s a battle of who’s going to stop.”
Akpore has seen the narrow streets cause problems for delivery trucks, school buses and many other larger vehicles.
Citing the parking situation as a public safety issue, Orange County leaders, backed by the fire marshal, said that starting in 2018, vehicles will only be able to park on one side of the street.
Mozier was glad to know that other people will no longer have to experience a life-or-death delay like he did.
“It could be the difference of the house next door catching fire, or the person stopping breathing, or whatever things can happen in those seconds,” he said.
A town hall meeting is scheduled to take place during the spring to explain the parking changes to Avalon Park residents.

Cox Media Group

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