No parking on Capitol lawn

For state Rep. Nelson Dollar, the construction vehicles parked in front of statues and monuments on the Capitol's lawn had ruined enough field trips.

So Dollar got his fellow lawmakers to do something about it.

The Cary Republican sponsored a bill that would let state maintenance vehicles park on the streets around the Capitol for free as long as they stayed off the building's lawn. On Thursday, the bill got final approval from the Senate.

"I just wanted it so school children and other visitors to the Capitol could see the vistas," Capitol said.

In the past, trucks were ticketed for parking too long in metered and free spots. The bill is a compromise between the Department of Administration, which own the trucks, and the city of Raleigh, which is planning on installing more parking meters along the streets.

"It was just to make sure that, no matter what, these people would still be able to work and park," Dollar said.