"What, Red Phone, is the law regarding parking in any alley in Gilroy? OK, the areas of my main concern are the alleys on the 7400 and 7500 blocks of Church Street. Also, I believe Santa Clara County has a law that requires each residence to have 100 square feet of space per person sleeping in a dwelling. This came about because, when times were good in Silicon Valley and rentals were scarce, people would rent out floor space in their homes by the night to various individuals. So what law does Gilroy have? How is parking, sanitation and neighborhood safety to be maintained with transient overcrowding not to mention the illegal dwellings which exist in the core neighborhood?"

Dear Stuck in the Alley Again,

Red Phone contacted Sgt. Jim Gillio regarding the parking issue. He cited municipal code Sec. 15.94: No person shall stop, stand or park a vehicle for any purpose other than the loading or unloading of persons or materials in any alley, but any such stopping, loading or parking shall be so done as not to block the alley or prevent the passage of other vehicles.

"This applies to the actual alley, not private property near the alley," he said.

Call 846-0320 to register a complaint, then call Red Phone if it's not taken care of to your satisfaction

As far as the issue of overcrowding, Red Phone contacted Code Enforcement Officer Scott Barron. He said complaints dealing with the issue of overcrowding are occasionally received by the city.

"As you can see by the Red Phone complaint, this type of complaint is usually initiated due to parking difficulties created by additional cars, rather than by health issues created by the increased occupant density. Most people feel that they should be able to use the parking spaces in front of their house. Where the offending residence is a rental unit, the neighbors may be able to speak to the property owner about the problem. State law does allow landlords to establish reasonable standards for the number of people that may occupy a residential unit. The city of Gilroy on the other hand does not enforce overcrowding. The municipal code is silent on the issue; however, the Uniform Housing Code Sec 503.2 provides brief guidance on what it may constitute. It says that two persons may sleep in a sleeping room that is at least 70 square feet or larger with 50 square feet added for each additional occupant. That means three people could sleep in a sleeping room that is at least 10-feet by 12-feet. A sleeping room could be considered any 'habitable room' in the house; that generally means any room that is not a kitchen, bathroom, closet, garage or utility room (with a few qualifiers). When you do the math, you will find that even if the city was enforcing this difficult to enforce area; most of the complaints brought to the city's attention would not be in violation of these guidelines."

So good caller, hope that answers your question. If not, call Red Phone again.

The street is not a garage

"A new resident of Carr Place think it's OK to work on cars in front of their house and in the street. It's quite an eyesore to those who work hard to keep neighborhoods looking nice. Unfortunately, house values are dropping, but this may help the neighborhood selling price hit rock bottom very quickly! Please contact the appropriate city official to help eliminate this eye sore! Thanks."

Dear Eliminating Eyesores,

Red Phone contacted Code Enforcement Officer Scott Barron, who cited the city's municipal code.

"Chapter 5C.08. of the municipal code prohibits the parking, storing or maintaining of any motor vehicle that has been wrecked, dismantled or disassembled, or any part thereof, or any motor vehicle that is disabled or may not be operated for a period of time in excess of seventy-two (72) consecutive hours, in the front yard area of any property zoned or used for residential uses. Municipal code Sec 15.53 also states that it is unlawful for any person to grease, maintain, or repair a vehicle while such vehicle is parked on any city street, except when such repair is necessitated by an emergency.

So good caller, looking to keep your neighborhood neat violations of these codes should be refereed to Gary Muraoka with the Gilroy Police Department at 846-0320. Should your neighbors continue the unlawful work, give Red Phone another call.