NORWAY — The Board of Selectmen has agreed to try to wean residents from parking their boats and commercial vehicles in a small municipal parking lot on Water Street.

Town Manager David Holt brought the issue to the board’s attention Thursday night after a resident who lives off Sodom Road called to ask if he could park his boat there. The lot is near Butters Park, directly across the Pennesseewassee Stream from the Gingerbread House.

Interest in the lot has heightened recently after talk of a pedestrian bridge connecting the lot and the Gingerbread House and Matolcsy Art Center and funding for the plan was approved in June. Previously there has been limited use of the lot, except several years ago when the board talked about letting employees of a proposed Odd Fellows Block project park there. That project never got off the ground.

In 2003, voters passed an ordinance regulating municipal parking lots, including the Water Street lot. Under the ordinance no one is allowed to park a vehicle in a public lot for more than the the posted time, which is generally 48 hours.

Penalties for violations of the ordinance, which include snow removal provisions, range from $10 to $30, depending on whether it is the first, second or third offense. Habitual offenders, who are defined as those with more than six offenses within a one-year period, may be issued a civil citation to District Court in Paris and subject to a fine of up to $50.

The town does not plow the lot in winter.

The problem with the Water Street lot, Holt said, is that when sidewalks were built, they left no room on the already small residential lots for people to park extra vehicles. Because of that, the town has been lenient in allowing residents to use the Water Street lot for parking.

But with renewed interest in the site and the increase in commercial vehicles and boats in the lot, Holt said he believes it’s time to address the issue and let the owners know that they may need to look for other parking spots in the future.

“We’ll keep an eye on it,” board Chairman Russ Newcomb said.

Selectman Warren Sessions Jr. agreed, saying he would like to “get it under control.”

Police Chief Rob Federico will begin speaking to vehicle owners about the ordinance and how it affects their use of the Water Street lot, Holt said.

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