I published this in my “A2Council Update” newsletter on September 25, 2022
This week, two local media outlets published stories about a new activity in Ward 4: this fall, Briarwood Mall is hosting RV’s for football game weekends. I was excited to read about the activities at Briarwood because this was a solution I actively promoted this summer.
When news first broke that Pioneer High school would no longer be hosting RV’s for these football weekends, several Ward 4 residents reached out to me with concern — they worried that these RVs might look for (and attempt to park overnight) within residential neighborhoods near the Stadium. In the short time I’ve been on Council, I have helped with one instance of illegal RV overnight parking in a residential neighborhood, so I do understand that this resident concern was rooted in past experience.
Shortly after reading news about it, I connected with a member of the school board and our City fire chief, to understand the past logistics at Pioneer High School and necessary safety improvements moving forward. I reached out to our liaison at the UM and confirmed that no one affiliated with the football program (booster clubs or alumni groups) were even talking about the potential problem, much less potential solutions.
After a few conversations with residents (who had various ideas about where RV’s might relocate), I connected directly with Natalie Watson from Briarwood Mall. I explained the anxiety of Ward 4 residents and the approximate number of RV’s previously hosted at Pioneer High School; I also shared the information from our fire chief about how to safely facilitate the activity. A few weeks later, I talked to Taylor Bond of Park-n-Party, who had been contacted by Briarwood Mall to discuss it. I am pleased to see that this idea came together— I’m especially glad for these RV’s to have an alternate location that isn’t disruptive to residents!