Parking problems are causing controversy in Elk Grove. People who live near some schools say the students and their cars are becoming a neighborhood nuisance.

Elk Grove city leaders are now taking steps to ban kids from parking off campus.

Kevin Siebald said that at times, all the parking spots on his block are filled with cars coming from nearby schools.

"They'll park here, they'll park there," Siebald said.

Now, more than 75% of people who live in the neighborhood south of Pleasant Grove High School (PGHS) and Albanian Middle School have signed a petition asking the city for help.

So why are so many students parking on city streets?

"We don't have enough spots in the lots that we have," PGHS senior Kara Hughes said.

Hughes said the school has a lottery system to hand out parking passes, and those who don't get one have to park off campus.

"It's not ideal for obviously the people in the neighborhood, but we've got to do what we've got to do to go to school," she said.

Parents say a number of students attending Pleasant Grove live outside of Elk Grove.

But now changes are coming. Elk Grove city leaders have approved turning Amber Waves Way and several other streets into a restricted parking zone.

"We will have signage up that will dictate the hours that it's permitted parking," said Kristin Parsons, the city's public works deputy director. "In this case, it will be from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m."

People who live here can get a permit to park on the street for free, but everyone else will be banned.

"If you do park in the restricted area, they may receive a citation from the police department," Parsons said.

But some students and parents say this still doesn't solve the bigger issue of not having enough places to park.

"The school's been there for 20 years, and it's not going away," one parent said. "I think that the city should work with the school to come up with a solution."

Elk Grove has a preferential parking zone in three other parts of town, and they say neighborhood parking complaints have stopped since the restrictions went into effect.