By DAVID LOPEZ
Special to the PRESS
After forming a committee between himself and council member Ken Medders, Kerry Schwartz’s proposals for curbing golf cart use in South Padre Island were tabled by city council members in last week’s regular meeting.
Beginning first with posting signs prohibiting golf carts on Highway 100 (where the speed limit increases above 35 mph), Shwartz said what concerned him most was the safety of drivers.
“This isn’t punitive by any means,” Schwartz said. “This is a safety measure.”
Despite further discussion and support from Medders, the remaining council members voted to table the motion until they held further discussions with the golf cart community, stakeholders and residents.
On the same issue, the council then discussed the larger topic of proposing that staff and legal amend the Code of Ordinances to restrict the hours of operation for rental golf carts from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Schwartz wished to clarify that the city council was not voting on the ordinance as it had not yet been drafted, and that if any motion were approved, it would be to direct a revision of ordinance 18-30.
“With the goal of preventing and reducing the risk of future serious accidents and possible deaths as recently occurred in Galveston, council member Medders and myself have been consulting with staff and city attorney to bring to city council recommendations to improve golf cart safety,” Schwartz said.
Schwartz brought up his justification, saying he, Medders, the City Manager and SPI Police Chief reviewed golf cart ordinances from other coastal cities, including Corpus Christi and Rock Port, which both prohibit driving golf carts at night. “These ordinances coincide with a Texas law that prohibits night time use of golf carts,” he said.
Apart from the restrictions, Schwartz said the ordinance would also address the nuisance to cars such as honking and yelling coming from golf carts.
Mayor Pro-Tem Joe Ricco stepped in to ask the chief of police how many cart related accidents the city had in the past 12 months. Chief Claudine O’Carroll answered 20, with zero of those occurring after 9 p.m. Ricco pointed out that the data did not support the proposed ordinance. However, Schwartz rebutted saying there was no data yet, as the number of registered golf carts on the Island increased from 600 a year ago to 902, with 540 of those being rentals and 330 being personal golf carts.
Multiple residents took the podium to speak on the issue, with most speaking against the ordinance as they employed golf carts for either personal or professional reasons.
Mayor Patrick McNulty asked the City Attorney Edmund Cyganiewicz if a business could argue that this ordinance was a “taking” if they could prove that this ordinance negatively impacted their business.
They could argue that, legal said.
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