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Snow and parking spaces

Started by 1995hoo, February 20, 2015, 09:43:24 AM

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jakeroot

Quote from: 1995hoo on February 20, 2015, 03:44:36 PM
I noted above the reason the second car wasn't in the driveway: Snow and ice falling off the house and landing on the driveway. Didn't want it landing on, and damaging, the car. (Also, as I noted earlier, it's a hassle if you want to drive the car that's in the garage and another is in the driveway. That's usually our situation: The one in the garage has seat heaters and the like, the ones outside do not.)

I think that's a great East Coast / West Coast comparison. I don't know of very many, if any, single lane driveways where I live (many have three garages and thus three "lanes") so the problem isn't something I really thought about (though there are quite a few condos in the area with double long parking spots). In your situation, I would have also parked in the street. Don't want ice any ice bombs damaging the car.


NJRoadfan

1. Whoever did that plow job did a lousy job. We have a bit more snow here and there is zero problem parking in the street, no clearing needed. Even in the neighborhoods that allow on street parking during snow emergencies (where you would have to "dig out" a spot) there hasn't been any issue, just drive on top of the snow!

2. If they have to resurface the roads every 3 years (mill and pave) they are doing something very wrong. A proper pave of a light traffic street should last at least 10-15 years, even in the snowbelt.

1995hoo

Quote from: NJRoadfan on February 20, 2015, 04:08:13 PM
1. Whoever did that plow job did a lousy job. We have a bit more snow here and there is zero problem parking in the street, no clearing needed. Even in the neighborhoods that allow on street parking during snow emergencies (where you would have to "dig out" a spot) there hasn't been any issue, just drive on top of the snow!

Split job. Plowing on the street where the houses are is the HOA's responsibility. Plowing on the street leading in and out (where the controversial parking space is) is VDOT's responsibility. The HOA's contractor can't plow VDOT's streets due to liability issues. So the HOA plow pushes the snow down the block and then has to pile it up at the corners so as not to shove it out into the VDOT street.

Quote from: NJRoadfan on February 20, 2015, 04:08:13 PM
2. If they have to resurface the roads every 3 years (mill and pave) they are doing something very wrong. A proper pave of a light traffic street should last at least 10-15 years, even in the snowbelt.

They don't do a full milling and paving. I think they call it "sealcoating," though I'm not sure–the contractor comes out and does something and when they're done the street is a nice fresh black color with any cracks and other such stuff filled in. Either way, they tell us in advance and for two days we have to park around the corner.

Actually, that led to its own issue last time when the guy in front of me left at the same time I did, then we came back to find the guy up the street with "Diplomat" plates had parked squarely in the middle of the vacated space, i.e., there was space for two vehicles and he parked so half his vehicle took up each of the two "spaces." That one burned me up because it seemed like a situation where it should be obvious you shouldn't leave excess space because everyone had to park down there (and I did my part by putting the car we weren't going to drive in the garage so as to free up on-street space). I don't know whether he was intentionally being an asshole, whether he was being a dick because he knows his Diplomat plates let him get away with stuff, or whether he doesn't know how to parallel park and he took up too much space because he was afraid he wouldn't be able to get back out. (Doesn't matter anymore, the guy moved away last year.)

See below. I remember this all too clearly. I was parked in front of the Honda to the right and a neighbor was parked between my car and the Toyota to the left. We both left at the same time and I came back 15 minutes later to find the minivan parked like this on a day when all the on-street parking was taken due to the roadwork being done. If we lived in New York or Boston, I doubt it would have gone well for him....

"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

1995hoo

.....and after downloading dashcam footage, I've figured out whose car was parked there and therefore who left the note. He is a renter who fills his garage with crap and has three cars, one of which never moves from his driveway and which he cannot park on the street because the county would tow it due to an out-of-state license plate that expired in 2008.

I'm not sure whether I'll do anything about it. Ignoring the loser is probably the best way to go.
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

bulldog1979

In my home area (the UP of Michigan), most cities ban overnight parking on city streets from Nov. 1 until April 1 every winter. It doesn't matter if there is snow or not, although the police will issue warnings instead of tickets after Nov. 1 until the first snowfall. Traverse City bans overnight parking in places all year long. In those cases, you better have some plan for off-street parking if you want to own a car.

The City of Marquette bans parking in the front yards of properties, although there are rental houses and such grandfathered in because they don't have driveway access to a back or side yard area.

I know that in the City of Negaunee, it is illegal to block the sidewalk with a car in your driveway, and the cops do ticket for it. I think they have a bit of leniency in cases where the only car that would fit on a driveway without blocking a sideway is a Smart Car.

1995hoo

I was outside moving the cars around the morning after thawing, draining, and refilling the washer fluid in the afflicted vehicle. Since my wife asked me not to park it back in the "claimed" spot, I put it somewhere else.....and as I did so, our next-door neighbor came along and asked me why I didn't park across the street in the clear spot. So I told her what happened and her reaction was, "You can't save spaces on a public street in the suburbs!" She said next time we have to shovel our driveways we should throw it all in front of his (not worth the effort of hauling it across the street, IMO, and no reason to escalate things).

I wrote an anonymous, polite, yet firm letter to the guy telling him he was in the wrong, especially since he didn't "mark" the space, but I have not printed nor mailed it. Don't know whether I will.
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

6a

I think the question that really needs asked of this guy is why the hell did he bother clearing out a space for that bit of snow? Just drive over it, you wuss.

1995hoo

Quote from: 6a on February 21, 2015, 04:05:35 PM
I think the question that really needs asked of this guy is why the hell did he bother clearing out a space for that bit of snow? Just drive over it, you wuss.


It gets funnier. It's been snowing all day, though still not a deep snow–I was feeling lazy and used the leafblower to clear my driveway (don't want to shovel, but there's not enough to gas up the snowblower).

So I went down the block to check on my wife's car and I found the car that this guy shoveled out, that he so urgently feels he is entitled to park in that one spot, is parked four spaces down (two behind the silver Ford in the wide-angle photo above) and the space he thinks is "his" is sitting there empty! WTF, dude.
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

jeffandnicole

Quote from: 1995hoo on February 20, 2015, 04:24:21 PM


This stuff I absolutely hate. 

In my carpool the fellow carpoolers park in front of my house.  In the 14 or so years we've been doing this carpool, I have told them umpteen number of times that the first car there park close to the driveway, so when all 3 cars are parked (which only applies on days I drive), they are all in front of my property.  And yet, many days, the first guy there will park about 3/4ths of a car length away from the driveway.  One guy claims that he was told in drivers ed (30 or so years ago now) that he should park 13 feet away from a driveway...which is an oddly specific distance.  Regardless...I've said you can pull right up to the driveway apron.  Some days he does; some days he doesn't.

6a

Quote from: 1995hoo on February 21, 2015, 05:16:49 PM
Quote from: 6a on February 21, 2015, 04:05:35 PM
I think the question that really needs asked of this guy is why the hell did he bother clearing out a space for that bit of snow? Just drive over it, you wuss.


It gets funnier. It's been snowing all day, though still not a deep snow–I was feeling lazy and used the leafblower to clear my driveway (don't want to shovel, but there's not enough to gas up the snowblower).

So I went down the block to check on my wife's car and I found the car that this guy shoveled out, that he so urgently feels he is entitled to park in that one spot, is parked four spaces down (two behind the silver Ford in the wide-angle photo above) and the space he thinks is "his" is sitting there empty! WTF, dude.

At this point I'd wonder if it was actually the same guy, then I'd leave a candle on the curb at the spot and a note (with pic of candle) on the car saying "I've been praying for the safety of your sacred space"

Duke87

#35
You don't see anyone calling dibs around here. It's kind of a non-issue since nobody actually goes through the effort of removing every last bit of snow and ice to create a pristine space. You dig enough to get your car out and then drive out over the ice and snow. When you park, you park on top of whatever ice and snow is there (assuming it's not too much to prevent you from getting in). As it is parked right now I think my car has about three inches of ice under both rear tires. Meh. So really one open space is likely to be as good as any other.

Parking spaces will get plowed by the city, if there are several consecutive ones open when the snowplow comes by. But no one tries to lay special claim to them, since it wasn't their effort that cleared it, and the parking culture here is very "move your feet, take your seat, no calling fives".
If you always take the same road, you will never see anything new.

1995hoo

The streets are a slushy mess this morning since we got more freezing rain after the plow came through last night. Maybe I should put up a sign saying, "Stay off the roads, asshat. The snowplow cleared them, not you!"
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

Mr_Northside

Putting cones/chairs/etc. to reserve parking is pretty common in/around Pittsburgh - though not for some 3-4 inches BS.
The only time I've resorted to cones to save a space was the Snowmageddon of 2010.  I'm with those that realize there is no legal "right" to any particular space, but when there is that much work to simply clean your car out, there is an unwritten code that you've "earned" it until the rest of the snow is removed/melts. 
I look at it as a combination of both the effort taken (took me nearly in hour in 2010), and if someone else takes it while you're gone... you're really fucked.  Unless you are willing to risk a big ticket/tow parking in the middle of the street with your 4-ways on for hours.
I don't have opinions anymore. All I know is that no one is better than anyone else, and everyone is the best at everything

1995hoo

But you still put something in the space to denote that you want to "save" the space, right? You don't just leave it totally vacant and assume people will somehow know it's "yours"?
"You know, you never have a guaranteed spot until you have a spot guaranteed."
—Olaf Kolzig, as quoted in the Washington Times on March 28, 2003,
commenting on the Capitals clinching a playoff spot.

"That sounded stupid, didn't it?"
—Kolzig, to the same reporter a few seconds later.

empirestate

Though I've lived both in Pittsburgh and Boston, I really don't take any stock in the space-saving thing. Now that I'm in New York, the city actually seems to be on board with me; I think around here everyone just realizes both the pettiness and the futility of even trying to take dibs on something like a parking spot.

Perhaps part of the reason is that we tend to shovel a spot so that we can get into it, not out of it (at least, not until we leave again in the morning). While it's common in quiet weather to ask someone who appears to be leaving if he indeed is, when you see somebody shoveling around their car you know not to bother asking. They're not going to go to all that work clearing a space just to pull out and hand it to you! We do the bare minimum to get our tires out, blast over the pile of plowed snow, and leave the mess behind for whoever wants to pull in after us.

This one time, I was just finishing 90 minutes of snow removal around my car so that we could get out the next morning: it was predicted to snow some more and then ice over that night. A guy pulls up alongside my completely snow-free parking space and asks me if I'm about to leave. I'm like, "Are you kidding?" But in front of my car was a generously-sized parking space, completely empty save for a foot or so of flat, clean snow. I pointed and said "There's a huge space right there if you wanna clear it out." He said he didn't have a shovel; I said that was indeed a pity!

But as to the original story in this thread, I'm flummoxed by how there was even a conversation to be had. There was no snow, there was no scarcity of parking spaces, and everybody seems to have his own property to park on anyhow. The etiquette of saving spots doesn't even enter into it; can't enter into it.

Pete from Boston

Yeah, right?  A New York level of alternate-side parking here would cause a holy war.  Anyone who says that the parking thing is just about people getting their due for shoveling never got a threatening note in the summer from someone telling you not to park in "their" on-street space.

ET21

First come first serve basis. Until someone threatens you, don't worry about it
The local weatherman, trust me I can be 99.9% right!
"Show where you're going, without forgetting where you're from"

Clinched:
IL: I-88, I-180, I-190, I-290, I-294, I-355, IL-390
IN: I-80, I-94
SD: I-190
WI: I-90, I-94
MI: I-94, I-196
MN: I-90

kphoger

I don't shovel the street, except possibly a couple of feet behind and in front of my wheels; that's only if there's more than ten inches of snow and I need some acceleration room to blast my way out.  Step 1 after getting out of my parking space in heavy snow is to drive around the block and plow my way through along the curb line, thereby allowing me and other people easier access to parallel park.

And, even if there is heavy snowfall on the street and I have to park on the street, I still don't consider myself to own the spot in front of my house.  I've got no problem parking on the other side or one house down.
Keep right except to pass.  Yes.  You.
Visit scenic Orleans County, NY!
Male pronouns, please.

Quote from: Philip K. DickIf you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use them.



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