After some “no standing” signs popped up overnight in Middle Village, Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley (D-Middle Village) introduced a bill requiring the Department of Transportation to notify residents when parking in their neighborhood is changing.
The bill was introduced on Nov. 29 and would require the DOT to post notices on a block at least a week before changing any parking regulations.
Since then, it’s picked up 16 more sponsors, including Karen Koslowitz (D-Forest Hills), Eric Ulrich (R- Ozone Park) and Daniel Dromm (D- Elmhurst).
“The ticketing and towing of vehicles immediately after a new ‘no standing’ sign is installed is an unfair practice by the city. Local communities should receive proper notification before parking policy changes,” Crowley said.
Her push is motivated by a problem that hits close to home—or at least close to work.
Crowley’s office sits just southwest of Juniper Valley Park at Dry Harbor Road and Furmanville Avenue.
On the blocks behind her office, residents were having trouble making turns. On streets like 82nd and 83rd, cars parked all the way up to the corners made a turn onto Furmanville Avenue or 64th Road dangerously blind.
So, at the behest of drivers and Crowley’s office, the DOT started restricting parking near the corners to increase visibility, what they call “daylighting.”
But the day after the DOT put up new “no standing” signs, there was another problem.
“The next morning they ticketed all the people in those ‘no standing’ zones,” Crowley’s chief of staff, Lydon Sleeper said.
Residents started flowing into Crowley’s office complaining that they had gotten no warning about the change and were surprised by immediate ticketing and the threat of tows, Sleeper said.
The bill, Int. 716, is now making its way through the Transportation Committee, which is chaired by Councilman Jimmy Vacca (D-Pelham).
Its current text also requires the DOT to update the website listing parking regulations within one business day of any permanent changes. Additionally, the bill says anyone cited within five days of the notification being posted has a built-in defense to get out of the ticket.
“All we want is for the DOT to communicate as well with residents as they do with the NYPD,” Sleeper said.
By Jeremiah Dobruck
