The Hillsdale City Council voted to limit parking on McCollum Street near where a pedestrian was struck in February.

The traffic control order, passed 8-0, seeks to improve visibility in the crosswalk where pedestrian Joni Norris was hit by a Hillsdale County utility vehicle on Feb. 17. She was crossing McCollum Street at its intersection with North Broad Street. Norris died from her injuries March 7. 

The order limits parking on McCollum Street, the road which runs between Ethan’s Donut Factory and Hillsdale Filling Station. The new rule applies to the part of the road between Broad and Ferris Streets.  

“We had some stakeholders in the community approach us about trying to make the intersection a little bit more safe,” said Hillsdale Police and Fire Chief Kristopher Joswiak. “We sat down, discussed it, and came up with a plan to move some parking around a little bit, add a little bit more visibility to that intersection.” 

Parking will be limited on the north side from the point 38 feet east of the crosswalk to the point 25 feet west of the alleyway. On the south side of McCollum Street, drivers may use the two-hour parking between the point 62 feet east of the crosswalk to a point 25 feet west of Ferris Street.

On the south side of McCollum Street, there will be 22 feet of designated space, beginning 40 feet east of the crosswalk, for 20-minute loading and unloading. It will have a painted parking space, according to the traffic control order. 

Ward 4 Councilman Joshua Paladino said the TCO “seems like a good idea.” 

Joswiak said the parking situation already complied with state law, but the new parking restrictions will make the crosswalk more visible. He said the curb is already painted yellow to designate no parking, but placing a sign there will make it stand out to drivers. 

“The rationale behind that [traffic control order] is to clean up that intersection, because of the angle it’s at, to make it safer for pedestrian traffic,” Joswiak said.