A Berkeley Heights resident wants the town to limit a proposed left-turn ban at Mary Kay McMillin Early Childhood Center to school hours only.

Michael Leblond sent a letter to the Town Council and Board of Education, published Friday, Sept. 18, by NJ21st. He said he supports most of the proposed traffic changes at the Mountain Avenue school. His objection targets one element: a ban on left turns from the school parking lot that would apply around the clock.

Leblond wants the ban limited to 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on school days. Outside those hours, he wrote, traffic at the exit is minimal and a permanent restriction would force drivers to loop through town.

"Monday night, while leaving our scout meeting, we encountered no traffic when exiting Mary K. McMillin," Leblond wrote. "I turned left with no delay or danger."

He saw no reason for a round-the-clock rule.

A permanent right-turn-only restriction would push more vehicles past Columbia Middle School, which Leblond described as a route that "already has substantial traffic." Columbia Middle School, on Plainfield Avenue, serves about 523 students in grades six through eight.

Leblond pointed to an existing time-limited restriction in town as a model. A right-turn-only rule onto Timber Drive from Mountain Avenue already applies during specific hours rather than all day.

The parking lot serves more than morning drop-off, Leblond noted. Scouts, sports and other community events bring families to the school in the evenings and on weekends, when he said a blanket ban would be unreasonable.

The Town Council introduced traffic-related ordinances at its Sept. 15 meeting, according to TAPinto.

One ordinance would create a center left-turn lane on Mountain Avenue in front of McMillin. Both that ordinance and a separate measure establishing stop intersections at Washington Street and Berkeley Avenue are scheduled for public hearing and final adoption on Oct. 6.

The relationship between the center-turn-lane ordinance and the parking-lot left-turn ban Leblond describes is unclear. They may be separate elements of a broader traffic package for the school zone.

No public response from the Town Council, Board of Education or Berkeley Heights Police Department to Leblond's letter has appeared as of Saturday, Sept. 19.

Residents can speak at the Oct. 6 public hearing before the council votes.