Stop punishing resident drivers | Boston Herald

[Eva Webster]

This opinion piece in the Herald says that several City of Boston Councilors want Boston residents to start paying for resident parking stickers to the tune of $100.

Stop punishing resident drivers | Boston Herald

http://www.bostonherald.com/opinion/editorials/2018/07/stop_punishing_resident_drivers

[Angela Tang]

Thanks Eva. I am willing to pay for that if we get the designated parking space such as in front of the owner’s house for each resident sticker.

We can’t win with the city councils get the free parking at city hall. The Mayor gets one too. Right? They know that they will never get a parking ticket as long as they work there. So what do they care?

 

Angela Tang

 

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[Angela Tang]

Did the city councils and the Mayor charge the out of state cars for the fees when they park on our residents streets? Do they know that the Boston residents complain about it  all the time? Yes they do but they don’t care. Shame on them!!!!!

On Jul 6, 2018, at 9:05 AM, E W <ewk...@gmail.com> wrote:

Good Morning everyone,

I am not sure how I feel about paying for my sticker. I would appreciate more information regarding how the funds are tracked and used. 

A real peeve of mine is the number of out of state plates that are parked on my street and that often block my driveway.  I pay excise tax each year to the City of Boston. The owners of these cars do not. I would love to see the provision enforces that out of state plates nees to be replaced after a certain amount of time. I realize people visit and have short term leases. Many of these cars can't get resident stickers because of their out of state plates, so they park on our street because it doesn't require a sticker. Then residents who pay tax can't park.

Just my two cents.

Happy Summer 

Eileen 

On Fri, Jul 6, 2018, 8:50 AM George Kokkinogenis <kokkin...@gmail.com> wrote:

Good morning to all,

Its very disengenius of councilors asking residents to pay to park. The colleges and universities in the area keep taking more and more, charge for parking and the rest of us get penalized yet once again financially for bad public servant management. 

Thank you, now I know whom not to support next election season.

[Michael DeMarco]

Yes, phantom garaging or illegal cars are a huge problem in the city.
It has been mentioned numerous times on this board and nobody is
willing to step up to help solve this problem. Charging for resident
parking is just going to encourage more of these guys who don't play
by the rules. It is not just out of state plates; there are numerous
MA plates too that are registered outside of Boston so they can cheat
on their insurance.

BTD says they can't enforce it because it is a state issue (of course
they have no problem writing tickets for inspection and registration
which are also state issues). BPD says they can't enforce it for
parked cars but it might come up during a traffic stop. The only
recourse is below:

The RMV has a program to report vehicles that appear to be illegally
registered. It is confidential.

http://www.massrmv.com/SuspensionsandHearings/Hearings/IPayTaxProgram.aspx

Mike
Orkney Road

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[Christopher J. Arena]

FWIW, I think it should be $200, with exemptions for those with disabilities and access issues. I love the idea of paid parking passes and would gladly pay for one if it discourages more cars being brought into this city.

This is a very walkable, bussable, and bike-able city. We have the T, the commuter rail, amazing dedicated bike lanes, and plenty of ways to get around. Car ownership should be discouraged. We should all aim to me multi-modal instead of being reliant on cars and we should encourage development that has LESS parking, not more. 

There's no reason that we need this many cars in this city and we should actively discourage further widespread car ownership. 

[Eva Webster]

Un-American.

--

[Eva Webster]

"I think it makes sense to pay for parking on public streets and to use that $ to improve transit and pedestrian safety.”

Public transit improvements is an MBTA matter, and funding for it comes from the state budget, not the City’s budget.  As for pedestrian safety improvements, Boston's tax base is expanding rapidly — and the regular tax revenue, plus excise taxes that car owners already pay, is the natural source of funds for any necessary street/pedestrian improvements.

My husband said he saw Mayor Walsh on TV saying that you can’t charge people for a Resident Parking sticker if you can’t guarantee them a space. I agree with the Mayor on this.

Angela’s point that it would be great if people could pay for a Resident Parking sticker if it guaranteed them a parking space in front of their house makes sense, but it is very difficult, and most likely impossible to implement.

What about the cars whose owners live in dense apartment buildings that were built without parking?  There is not enough curb-side parking in front of those buildings to guarantee residents their spaces.

Also, some neighborhood houses have narrow street frontage, but have multiple residents with cars — where would the extra cars from those houses be authorized to park if not in front of the usually owner-occupied houses that are less densely populated?

Should the owners of houses with wide/long street frontage be allowed to get Resident Parking stickers for as many cars as would fit in front of their property?  How do you explain to people that some folks can park in front of their house, while others can (or cannot) park in front of somebody else’s house?

Maybe there is a solution to those problems — but I feel it would require a major, costly study, and even then, there would be no solution that most people would find satisfactory.  Too much density is the underlying problem.  Playing loose with the zoning code, and allowing structures that were built as family homes to be converted to dense rentals, is what has created such a dire shortage of on-street parking.

In any case, the main reason I don’t like the idea of $100 Resident Parking stickers is because I think that the cost of living in Boston is going up rapidly due to the out-of-control building boom, and paying for those stickers would be imposing additional hardship on many long-term residents who are already struggling to stay here (and never asked the City to encourage this out-of-control boom), and who need to have a car for work-related or personal reasons.

Charging people for Resident Parking stickers would make no difference in the number of cars on the street — it would only hasten the process of replacing the people who can’t afford an extra cost of owning a car in Boston with those who can.  (The pro-taxes & pro-fees individuals often profess to be for the common man, but can’t see how their ideas have negative consequences for the common man.)

$100 Resident Parking stickers would also hurt Boston homeowners and other residents who have private off-street parking (none of which is for free, of course).  If their private parking spaces are temporarily out of commission (for example, because the house/building is getting renovated, the driveway needs to be repaved, or the spaces need to be given to visiting family members or significant others), the owners /renters of those private off-street parking spaces would also have to pay $100 for a Resident Parking sticker just to be able to park on the street in those rare instances. 

Also, charging Boston residents for using their own streets is a slippery slope.  By that logic, it would make sense to start issuing paid permits to bicyclists for the privilege of leaving/chaining the bikes anywhere on public property, or to require residents to buy permits to walk on public sidewalks, to sit on public benches, or to use public parks.  Imagine how much money the City could collect for anybody’s pet cause (since everyone imagines/hopes that revenue from new taxes and fees would magically be directed to whatever is personally important to them). 

The issue of many out-of-state cars parked on our streets is an entirely separate matter.   The City could, if it really tried, find a way to make Boston residents who own cars registered elsewhere to register them with the City and pay the excise tax.  But it’s easier said and done. It also has a flip side — those cars would then qualify for Resident Parking stickers, possibly making it harder for long-term residents to find on-street parking.

Eva 

On 7/6/18, 8:44 AM, "Max Rome" <homeowners-union-o...@googlegroups.com on behalf of max....@gmail.com> wrote:

I agree, I believe this plan has flexibility to adjust the price based on neighborhood and number of cars per household. I think it makes sense to pay for parking on public streets and to use that $ to improve transit and pedestrian safety. I would love to see this coupled with guest passes as is done in Cambridge.

[Andrew Fischer]

Residents don’t pay for the right to garage their cars on public property — i.e. public streets.  The going rate to rent a parking space is anywhere from $150-250/month, and much more in neighborhoods such a Backbay and Beacon Hill.

$100 for a sticker good for a year is a real bargain for what you would be paying for parking at the going rate.

Andrew M. Fischer
Law Office of Jeffrey S. Glassman LLC
One International Place, Suite 1810,
Boston, MA 02110
Phone 617-367-2900
FAX 617-722-9999
afis...@Jeffreysglassman.com
www.jeffreysglassman.com
www.bikeattorney.com

On Jul 6, 2018, at 11:41 AM, Racheotes, Elaine <Elaine.R...@CARDIO.CHBOSTON.ORG> wrote:

I was under the impression that “Resident Parking” was for the residents of the neighborhood and people that do not live in the neighborhood are required to find parking in areas that are either parking lots or metered parking, etc. I cannot understand why residents will need to pay for their parking, as well. Since the residents already pay for real estate taxes, rent, etc.

 

I think that our elected officials should do their very best to block such a hike for the Resident Parking Stickers.

 

Thank you,

 

Elaine Racheotes

 

From: homeowners-union-o...@googlegroups.com [mailto:homeowners-union-o...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of George Kokkinogenis
Sent: Friday, July 06, 2018 8:50 AM
To: homeowners-union-o...@googlegroups.com
Cc: AllstonBrighton2006; cleveland-cir...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [HUAB] RE: Stop punishing resident drivers | Boston Herald [EXTERNAL]

 

Good morning to all,

 

Its very disengenius of councilors asking residents to pay to park. The colleges and universities in the area keep taking more and more, charge for parking and the rest of us get penalized yet once again financially for bad public servant management. 

 

Thank you, now I know whom not to support next election season.

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[Angela Tang]

That is not right Andrew. The out of state cars park on our streets and don’t even pay any thing to Boston. And worse of all, the city of Boston has no way to keep track of those out of state cars.

On Jul 30, 2018, at 5:10 PM, Andrew Fischer <andrewm...@gmail.com> wrote:

Residents don’t pay for the right to garage their cars on public property — i.e. public streets.  The going rate to rent a parking space is anywhere from $150-250/month, and much more in neighborhoods such a Backbay and Beacon Hill.

$100 for a sticker good for a year is a real bargain for what you would be paying for parking at the going rate.

Andrew M. Fischer
Law Office of Jeffrey S. Glassman LLC
One International Place, Suite 1810,
Boston, MA 02110
Phone 617-367-2900
FAX 617-722-9999
afis...@Jeffreysglassman.com
www.jeffreysglassman.com
www.bikeattorney.com

<BikeAttorney Scaled .png>

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[Eva Webster]

"$100 for a sticker good for a year is a real bargain for what you would be paying for parking at the going rate."

Andrew, when you pay for a garage or other off-street parking space, you are guaranteed to have its use.  Not so with parking no the street.

Your position that people should be paying for parking on public streets is not well reasoned (of course, t’s a separate issue from meter parking in tight commercial centers where preserving customers’ access to businesses allow those businesses to serve).

Streets were built for cars and other modes of transportation with taxpayers funds. Car owners are also members of the public — just like bikers and pedestrians.

Using a public asset that was built for that purpose with public funds should be absolutely free to everyone. Otherwise municipalities could be building public parks, for example, and only make them available to people willing/able to pay to use them.

There can be a low nominal charge just to support the cost of administering the parking sticker program — but to be charging people for using public streets is a slippery slope.  What’s next? — a paid permit to walk on the streets when there are too many of us and streets become very crowded?

The demand for on-street parking is self-correcting.  When finding a parking space becomes a nightmare, people get rid of their cars, or don’t use them as often.  No need to burdening families, lower-income, or unemployed people with yet another expense in this expensive-to-live city.  The money that the city takes away from them is the money that those people need for other necessities — or could use to beautify their yards, or support local businesses.

When the government exacts too much money out of people, people get resentful and the civic spirt and collective support for social welfare suffer.

[Neal Klinman]

Mr. Fischer,

If you think that is a "real bargain" than I am happy to allow you to purchase said parking stickers for my two vehicles (which I own and use primarily for shuttling my three children around to school and activities when it is not safe or convenient for us to bike, by the way.)

-Neal

[Andrew Fischer]

But you are correct, Eva, that the demand for on-street parking is self-correcting.  When finding a parking space becomes a nightmare, people will get rid of their cars, or not use them as often. That is already happening in Boston and elsewhere.

On Jul 30, 2018, at 6:26 PM, Eva Webster <evawe...@comcast.net> wrote:

"$100 for a sticker good for a year is a real bargain for what you would be paying for parking at the going rate."

Andrew, when you pay for a garage or other off-street parking space, you are guaranteed to have its use.  Not so with parking no the street.

Your position that people should be paying for parking on public streets is not well reasoned (of course, t’s a separate issue from meter parking in tight commercial centers where preserving customers’ access to businesses allow those businesses to serve).

Streets were built for cars and other modes of transportation with taxpayers funds. Car owners are also members of the public — just like bikers and pedestrians.

Using a public asset that was built for that purpose with public funds should be absolutely free to everyone. Otherwise municipalities could be building public parks, for example, and only make them available to people willing/able to pay to use them.

There can be a low nominal charge just to support the cost of administering the parking sticker program — but to be charging people for using public streets is a slippery slope.  What’s next? — a paid permit to walk on the streets when there are too many of us and streets become very crowded?

The demand for on-street parking is self-correcting.  When finding a parking space becomes a nightmare, people get rid of their cars, or don’t use them as often.  No need to burdening families, lower-income, or unemployed people with yet another expense in this expensive-to-live city.  The money that the city takes away from them is the money that those people need for other necessities — or could use to beautify their yards, or support local businesses.

When the government exacts too much money out of people, people get resentful and the civic spirt and collective support for social welfare suffer.

 

On 7/30/18, 5:08 PM, "Andrew Fischer" <cleveland-cir...@googlegroups.com on behalf of andrewm...@gmail.com> wrote:

Residents don’t pay for the right to garage their cars on public property — i.e. public streets.  The going rate to rent a parking space is anywhere from $150-250/month, and much more in neighborhoods such a Backbay and Beacon Hill.

$100 for a sticker good for a year is a real bargain for what you would be paying for parking at the going rate.

Andrew M. Fischer
Law Office of Jeffrey S. Glassman LLC
One International Place, Suite 1810,
Boston, MA 02110
Phone 617-367-2900
FAX 617-722-9999
afis...@Jeffreysglassman.com
www.jeffreysglassman.com
www.bikeattorney.com

<BikeAttorney Scaled .png>

<BikeAttorney Scaled .png>

[Andrew Fischer]

No, Eva, streets weren’t built for cars.  They were built for people.  When the streets in Boston were built, they were built for pedestrians and people on horses and in carts and carriages, and for horse drawn wagons.  

In fact the first streets were paved for bicycles because of the lobbying of the League of American Wheelmen in the 1890s.  Streets were built for hundreds of years before there were cars and we will have streets after cars have been replaced with the next mode of transportation.  Streets were built for people to get from one place to another.  The notion that people are entitled to store their things, in this case their cars on public ways is not founded in law or history.  It is a strange anomaly of the last 50-75 years.  

Andrew

On Jul 30, 2018, at 6:26 PM, Eva Webster <evawe...@comcast.net> wrote:

"$100 for a sticker good for a year is a real bargain for what you would be paying for parking at the going rate."

Andrew, when you pay for a garage or other off-street parking space, you are guaranteed to have its use.  Not so with parking no the street.

Your position that people should be paying for parking on public streets is not well reasoned (of course, t’s a separate issue from meter parking in tight commercial centers where preserving customers’ access to businesses allow those businesses to serve).

Streets were built for cars and other modes of transportation with taxpayers funds. Car owners are also members of the public — just like bikers and pedestrians.

Using a public asset that was built for that purpose with public funds should be absolutely free to everyone. Otherwise municipalities could be building public parks, for example, and only make them available to people willing/able to pay to use them.

There can be a low nominal charge just to support the cost of administering the parking sticker program — but to be charging people for using public streets is a slippery slope.  What’s next? — a paid permit to walk on the streets when there are too many of us and streets become very crowded?

The demand for on-street parking is self-correcting.  When finding a parking space becomes a nightmare, people get rid of their cars, or don’t use them as often.  No need to burdening families, lower-income, or unemployed people with yet another expense in this expensive-to-live city.  The money that the city takes away from them is the money that those people need for other necessities — or could use to beautify their yards, or support local businesses.

When the government exacts too much money out of people, people get resentful and the civic spirt and collective support for social welfare suffer.

 

On 7/30/18, 5:08 PM, "Andrew Fischer" <cleveland-cir...@googlegroups.com on behalf of andrewm...@gmail.com> wrote:

Residents don’t pay for the right to garage their cars on public property — i.e. public streets.  The going rate to rent a parking space is anywhere from $150-250/month, and much more in neighborhoods such a Backbay and Beacon Hill.

$100 for a sticker good for a year is a real bargain for what you would be paying for parking at the going rate.

Andrew M. Fischer
Law Office of Jeffrey S. Glassman LLC
One International Place, Suite 1810,
Boston, MA 02110
Phone 617-367-2900
FAX 617-722-9999
afis...@Jeffreysglassman.com
www.jeffreysglassman.com
www.bikeattorney.com

<BikeAttorney Scaled .png>

<BikeAttorney Scaled .png>

[Andrew Fischer]

[David Hall]

And let's not forget that "parking" was originally a term for planting trees in the public space along roadways. http://arnoldia.arboretum.harvard.edu/pdf/articles/2015-73-2-the-etymology-of-parking.pdf

We are in this weird situation where people advocate for the city to provide public storage of private property and then advocate for private entities to make space for street trees.

It makes far more sense for the government to use public space for public goods like street trees and allow private entities to allocate space on their private land for storage of private property.

Andrew

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[Christopher J. Arena]

Love it. You are COMPLETELY right Andrew. While car drivers may have the loudest voices, this infrastructure was not built to handle the demand of THIS many cars on public roads. We should build a forward thinking city with bike lanes, expanded bus routes, and increased PED options - not encourage car ownership. I fully welcome politicians who support green spaces over car spaces.

On Monday, July 30, 2018 at 11:57:52 PM UTC-4, Andrew Fischer wrote:

Andrew

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[Christopher J. Arena]

Love this idea. It feels to me that green space is something we all can enjoy - a true public good. Unless other residents plan to start driving me around in their private cars and vice versa, a private car is just that - private property. I house my car in a private parking spot. If we didn't have that, we would sell the car. When we visit a business, we gladly pay street parking if there is a meter.

The city shouldn't encourage more public storage of private property and should reclaim this land for public use - i.e. transportation lanes, green space, etc.