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Daily news for Seattle's Ballard neighborhood |
ballardboop
offlineMember
A car has been parked in front of my house for five weeks and it hasn't moved. Prior to Christmas, I never saw this car before, so I don't believe it belongs to someone on my block. I don't think a homeless person lives in it as I haven't seen anyone approach it. Parking is tight so it's weird and annoying that this car appears to be abandoned right in front of my house.
Has this happened to anyone else? Are there any rules about how long a car can remain abandoned until it is towed?
ballardmike
offlineMember
Until somebody calls it in. Could be stolen and ditched... not terribly unusual. =(
PDaddymom
offlineMember
In the city of Seattle a vehicle can only be parked on the street for 72 hours at a stretch. Contact the City of Seattle Abandonded Vehicle Division - I do it online - easy to file a report. They have been very good about responding when I have submitted a report.
ballardboop
offlineMember
Wow - thank you. 72 hours seems harsh - what about when you go on vacation? But, five weeks is not harsh, so I'll file a report online.
onederfullone
onlineMember
"what about when you go on vacation?"
Without your only car?
Seattle says screw you ;-)
[edit]...unless you are living in it.
VeganBiker
offlineMember
ballardboop - you might check with your neighbors first!
There was a car parked across the street from us that appeared one day and never left. I talked to the neighbor that lived there and he called it in after a few weeks, turns out it was stolen and dumped there.
collingswood
offlineMember
Don't get your hopes up when you notify the city. We had an abandoned car on our block that the city came and tagged. Several weeks later it was still there. One neighbor went in the car and found a name and phone number. He called, it was the owner, and it turned out the car had been reported stolen weeks earlier. Apparently the parking enforcement computer and the stolen car computer don't talk to each other.
It gets worse however. Once it was reported in the Times that a man bought a car at the city impounded car auction. As he was driving home he was stopped, arrested, and charged with posession of a car that had been reported stolen.
collingswood
offlineMember
Don't get your hopes up when you notify the city. We had an abandoned car on our block that the city came and tagged. Several weeks later it was still there. One neighbor went in the car and found a name and phone number. He called, it was the owner, and it turned out the car had been reported stolen weeks earlier. Apparently the parking enforcement computer and the stolen car computer don't talk to each other.
It gets worse however. Once it was reported in the Times that a man bought a car at the city impounded car auction. As he was driving home he was stopped, arrested, and charged with posession of a car that had been reported stolen.
OingoBoingo
offlineMember
Call everyday it's 'overdue', in your humble opinion. If not, then it may attract other 'abandoneds' and with a little time thrown in, some live aboards as well.
Norge
offlineMember
The police have responded pretty well to me when a car has been parked out front and not moved in over two weeks. Sometimes they tag the car with a notice to move it, other times they tow it right away. I know a couple have been stolen and dumped or broken down and left or someone has moved and left the car. I have one out front now that has not been moved and is really close to my driveway -- less than 3 feet. Tomorrow I will go out and put a paper on it listing the parking rules in the City of Seattle -- that states you can't park closer than 5 feet to the driveway and for only 72 hours at a time. Now if it was a neighbor going on a two week vacation, as long as they let me know it wouldn't bother me but if it was over two weeks I would tell them to find a friend where they could park their car in their driveway or pay for a parking space somewhere -- I wouldn't want the responsibility or the hassle of a car alarm going off at all hours because it was bumped or broken into out front.
iPlod
offlineMember
I considered my car abandoned when I left it for good.
ballardgirl
offlineMember
Five weeks is a long time to leave an unused car on the street. You could leave a note, and see what happens. We have been very forgiving in the past about long term car storage on our street. That changed when we learned a very 'nice' neighbor, knowing people on her street were forgiving, was inviting friends working in alaska to store their cars here, while they were gone for 2 months. We are not so forgiving any more! For those who bike or bus to work, or go on vacations longer than 72 hrs: please move your car once a week, or ask a neighbor to do it for you! Most people will not call the abandoned car line, until someone abuses the privledge of free street parking.
phoo
offlineMember
Ballardboop: When I was 1 month new to Seattle, I went on vacation for 10 days and was totally unaware of the 72 hour law. And I had Oregon plates to boot, so folks around here tend to pick on out of state plates. The neighbors likely did not know I lived there (and there was a particular lady up the street who adhered to the 72 hour law, even 2 years later with Washington plates). When I came back, my Seattle friend spotted the orange tag on my car, and we saw chalk marks by the tires. Parking enforcement could have taken it at any time - it was 2-3 days past the date listed on the orange tag. I just plain got lucky they didn't tow me.
You pretty much have to pay someone to move your car when you're gone. Of course, that's easier said than done if all your friends attend the same out of state conference you do.
racerX
offlineMember
Phoo, no offense, but would you please consider changing your avitar? That spoonful might have tasted good, but...
VeganBiker
offlineMember
FWIW - there are some odd exceptions to all this. I walk past a car almost every day that is in my walking area. (I am not going to say where) but it rarely moves and has tabs that expired in March 2012. I have never seen an orange tag on it and as I say it rarely moves. It does not seem to bother anyone but I am curious as to how and why it is still there.
Cate
offlineMember
Call it in. Call cars in sooner rather then later. When my car was stolen it was found after three months parked on the same street it had been abandoned a day or two after it was stolen. Nobody called it in. So there it sat, my insurance company paid me off but then they owned the car when it was finally found. I wish someone had called it in.
ballardgirl
offlineMember
I am curious about something, do any of you think street parking should be free and with an unlimited time frame? There were some MB posts a few years back about a junk car dealer storing cars just off of 15th. Do any of you think it is ok for someone running a business to store cars on your street? I can only imagine that if it were acceptable to store cars, trailers, motorcycles etc for indeterminate periods of time, sooner or later, we would all be very unhappy. It seems reasonable that if any of us had to leave town, we would likely need someone to check on our house and car. This does not seem like too much to ask for free parking. Also, do those of you who think there should not be a 72 hour rule here in ballard think those living in higher density neighborhoods should not have limits on non residents parking in front of their houses overnight? What about parking meters, should people in belltown be allowed to store their car on the street for free because they do not need it every day?
Our free 72 hour street parking is a great deal, I hope people in Ballard will continue to use it wisely!
phoo
offlineMember
racerx, I was just thinking that before I read your post. I'm not sure why it would bother you, but I was just going to change it.
Do I think length of street parking should be unlimited? No, of course not, but 72 hours imho is a bit short. I previously lived in a neighborhood where parking was officially 140% of capacity. I don't think one week is unreasonable at all and would cover a lot of vacations.
Curtis
offlineMember
Right on Ballardgirl!
Well said.
ronnyj
offlineMember
Norge, how perfectly Seattle-passive aggressive of you to leave a note and not actually talk to your neighbor face to face. Personally I think it is ridiculous you cant leave a vehicle parked on the street when they want you to take the bus/ride your bike/carpool to work on a daily basis.
GAM
offlineMember
Notes are not by definition passive-aggressive (an overused term these days). I occasionally leave notes on cars in front of my house if I don't know who they belong to, but I identify myself and am straight forward and polite. That ain't passive-aggressive. It's communication. I grant you, no one likes to be told they are doing something wrong, and, having no defense, people will sometimes throw around terms like "passive-aggressive" and "control freak". Fortunately, that doesn't make it true.
Yes, it is ill thought out that the city encourages people to not use their car but the parking laws force them to drive. I'd like to see the 72 hours changed to a week.
racerX
offlineMember
GAM, well said.
Corvus
offlineMember
Sometimes I may go several weeks or even months without seeing my neighbors, specially in the dark winter months. I don't think it is passive aggressive to leave a note. I left one for my neighbor once because he frequently parked with his bumper hanging over into the driveway space and sometimes 18 inches or more from the curb. My note applauded him for driving a tiny space saving economy car but said that he sometimes made it impossible to get our horribly large gas guzzling POS Mercedes out of the drive way.
No problems since.
ynh98107
offlineMember
In Seattle there is a 72-hour law (as discussed above). However Parking Enforcement (at least in Ballard) seems to use some supposed-city-suggested interpretations. A registered insured car parked in front of one's mortgaged home seems to get the tickets on the 73rd-hour, not the derelict hoarded junkers. In any case, from my observation, cars seems to fall into several, but limited to, categories: extra residents cars, car farmer vehicles, vagrant campers, vagrant hoarded vehicle (garbage only), and stolen cars. I am really surprised at the number of stolen cars left in front of my house just this year. Sounds like the car in this post could be a candidate.
teigyr
offlineMember
72 hours esp if you've never seen the car before. We have a few that show up, they get orange stickered, then we never see the cars again. I don't know if it is "spare parking" for someone who doesn't live on this street or the cars are dumped. We have had quite a few dumped cars, however. If you report online, they act quickly. If I report on the weekend, they are here on Monday.
Norge
offlineMember
ronnyj - when you have no idea where the car comes from or who drives it -- what am I supposed to do -- walk around and knock on people's doors? I am not afraid to identify myself and leave my name and address on any note I leave on a vehicle -- but I only leave that note once -- after that I call the parking enforcement line.
lifeisamazing
offlineMember
I was very glad when my car was stolen and someone called in an abandoned car. If it's unlocked and has been sitting there all this time it's likely stolen. I agree that 72 hours is ridicules but 5 weeks is cause for a call in so that whoever owns it can get it back. I agree that it would be nice to check with the neighbors but you say it's right in front of your house. I doubt someone would leave their car purposely in front of someone elses house for 5 weeks without letting people know so that it didn't get towed.
shelley
offlineMember
Soon after we moved into our house, someone parked a car there. It sat for I think a little more than a week. We called it in, an orange sticker appeared that afternoon. The next day a window was broken out, stereo stolen, trunk left open, rear tires stolen, license plates stolen. When we called the police again, they ran the VIN and the car had been reported stolen nearly about the time we first noticed it. I think they probably just ran the plate number rather than the VIN when parking enforcement put the orange sticker on. The couple of times since a strange car has overstayed its welcome we put a note on it under the wiper asking it be moved.
great idea
onlineMember
when I go on vacation, I usually take my car with me so this 72 hour thing is not a problem.
ballardboop
offlineMember
Thanks for the discussion. I did report it online on Friday and as of 3 pm on Monday, nothing has happened. I'll let you know if/when it is stickered or towed.
plasticbags
onlineMember
It would be convenient if the 72 hours was waived for one vehicle that was registered to your address. When I was busing, I'd go 5 days without moving the car. I can fit both cars in the driveway but it's only 1 car wide so it's always a hassle to shuffle them. I'm pretty sure everyone knew it was mine so no one called it in.
BuffaloHawk
offlineMember
This was the law about parking on the street in the city that I grew up in. It was a real pain if someone stayed over or when us kids got older and started having our own cars also.They used to do this to make sure streets where clear if it snowed and had to be plowed.
http://www.ci.tonawanda.ny.us/police/index.htm
Section 306-17 All Night Parking [Amended 11/6/96]
The standing of vehicles between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. on all City streets is hereby prohibited from December 1 through March 31. The standing of vehicles from 4:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. on all City streets is hereby prohibited from April 1 through November 30.
The Police Department attempts to accommodate people when it is possible. During the winter months normally exceptions are not granted to the parking ordinance, but during the warmer months when no snow plowing is a possibility, we will grant permission for a vehicle to be parked on the City streets if a request is made and a valid reason is offered. Permission will NOT be granted for extended periods of time, but valid reasons for overnight permission may include:
Overnight guests and no parking available in your driveway to accommodate the extra cars.
Construction prohibits you using the driveway.
The vehicle is disabled and cannot be removed until the next day.
If this situation exists, you may call our Dispatch Center and request permission for the vehicle to be parked on the City Street. We can continue to accommodate these requests as long as the situation is not abused.
onederfullone
onlineMember
"We can continue to accommodate these requests as long as the situation is not abused."
..but, this is Seattle, we've got a majority of idiots that beg for abuse.
I think it would be good to accommodate them first. For once.
iPlod
offlineMember
Hmmm.
Tow away idiots and charge a fee to get them out of impound.
teigyr
offlineMember
Does anyone know about Car2Go and how the rules pertain to them? I know all parking fees (ie metered parking) is included in the rental. There are four parked on my run route and they haven't moved for weeks. Seems like they shouldn't be exempt from outstaying their welcome.
onederfullone
onlineMember
I know that Car2Go got a sweetheart deal from the city, and can not be cited anywhere, on any public street.
So, if you are using a Car2Go, and you pay for any parking, iplod will impound you.
teigyr
offlineMember
Lovely. So they are basically a car rental company that can park their cars wherever they want with no repercussions. One of the streets in question only has room for 8-10 cars, 3 of those cars are Car2Go cars that haven't moved since they arrived.
onederfullone
onlineMember
Welcome to idiotville.
(just in case you weren't officially warned)
I'd like to know why ZipCar got screwed, fwiw.
GAM
offlineMember
Giving parking priority to Cars2Go, ZipCar, etc., is a good idea, I think. Having them conveniently located encourages/allows a lot of people to get rid of their car entirely. I think the net result will be fewer cars on the road, as more people adopt this approach. Fewer cars=easier parking. As with all new things, it will be clunky getting started and there will be tension between those still owning a car wanting the parking that has been given over to the new system. But those pressures will ease as people adopt and adapt.
I still remember living on Capitol Hill and routinely parking several blocks from my house. The challenge then was just remembering where I parked from day to day! We don't have it so bad in Ballard.
onederfullone
onlineMember
Boy...you remind me of soylent green...
btw, your avatar reminds me how much we've evolved, and legs are SO overrated, in fact, even optional, if you so chose to keep them.
Maybe we ought to throw some prosthetics around, just within your reach, so you don't need them ever again.
I'm certain you'll adapt.
SmartsyArtsy
offlineMember
As a nearly 50 year resident of NYC much of this conversation sounds nutty. Until the late 90s cars had to be moved 4 days a week to supposedly make street cleaning convenient. considering that most people commuted to work via subway, this was a feat. As far as any notion that the street in front of where you live was "your" parking spot, well that may have existed here and there by octogenarians, but that continues to make me shake my head. Bravo for being concerned that a car may have been stolen. but other than that, why would you care about someone parking in front of your house? I don't get that sense of propriety.
BH, those parking restrictions you cite were to facilitate snow removal, I believe. That is quite usual in snowy cities in the NE.
ballardgirl
offlineMember
My thinking on the 72 hour rule is that it is actually a 144 hour rule. If someone calls your car in, they do not tow it right away. They chalk it, place a orange sticker and come back more than 72 hours later. So you can leave your car in free parking, on property you do not own for 6 days. This sounds like a great deal to me! Then you just move it every 6 days, and FREE PARKING! If we had free, unlimited parking for residents of ballard, we would have people renting out street parking spaces to their friends who live in QA or belltown,who bus or bike and then, well, you know... I guess it would be much more attractive to keep a car you do not need, and park it on city property, rather than on your land.
teigyr
offlineMember
We don't consider the space in front of the house as "ours", we actually have enough space off the street to park our vehicles. The problem we have, however, are people who park excess/non-working vehicles on our street. There are a few vehicles who don't appear to belong to anyone in the immediate neighborhood because these vehicles park until they are stickered then move around in a 2-ish mile range. Due to crime and also the fact that our neighborhood has been a dumping ground for cars in the past, we are very diligent about reporting as are our neighbors. I can 100% understand reporting a car that outstays its welcome.
I don't know why our response by parking enforcement is so fast, maybe it's because we've historically had a lot of problems. Lately I just see them driving around, which is lovely. We even had a van booted once :) Wasn't in front of our house and I didn't report it, was so much fun because I was running by as the driver discovered it. He was not amused.
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