Neighborhood Parking issues

[MillauFr]

The only thing I'm getting from this thread is...doesn't anyone park in their garage anymore? Obviously you can't if you don't have one, but that's what a garage is for!

I can barely fit my car down my driveway without scraping the retaining walls on either side. If I park there I have to climb out the window to get out. It is easier just to park on the street.

 

[indygirl99]

All this talk of mail carriers and deliveries brings back memories. Mom and Pop were both career USPS (Dad started as a carrier and later managed the mail trucks. Mom was in management). Sister and I did 90 day stints as carriers and clerks. Oh the joy! Now...this is a long time ago, but I do know that at one time the postal routes were actively timed. If the carried had a "walking" route, then he or she had exactly so many seconds between each house. That meant the carrier needed to cut across lawns to make the correct time. If they took too long on the street, it was frowned upon. If that happened too many times, there could be disciplinary action. (Also - if you, the home owner didn't like the carrier cutting across your lawn, you were required to file a complaint with the postmaster and the route time would be adjusted accordingly.)
Same for driven routes - x number of minutes to complete a "normal" delivery day.

That could be the reason that some of the carriers are hesitant to get out of their vehicles.

Or - they could just be contrary and don't want to .

And yes...EVERY WINTER in Chicago, there are news stories with the Mayor and other public officials telling folks that they can't put their stuff in the street to hold their shoveled out spot. Every winter...no one pays attention. The lawn chairs go out on the first snow and usually stay out until the spring thaw.

Yes they are still timed. DH worked as a "relief" carrier. His shortest route was 13.9 miles. He was expected to complete this route in 6 hours while carrying upwards of 50 pounds of mail in his bag. Rain, shine or snow. And this route was in an older neighborhood that had steps up to the porch and no lawn to cut across.

Most of the walking routes he did "relief" on averaged 24-26 miles and again was expected to complete the route in 6 hours or less. Any of you able to run the Boston Marathon carrying a 50 pound mailbag and complete it in 6 hours?

They wanted him to do "relief" on a driving route but when he found out that the route was 198 miles and he was again expected to complete it in under 6 hours he decided to get a different job.

 

[disneychrista]

I think DO NOT PARK IN FRONT OF MY HOUSE! It's not my fault you have weekly parties (quiet thankfully). I want to be able to come home after work/shopping/etc and be able to park in front of MY house.

(sorry personally rant)

 

[3boymthr]

This discussion is fascinating to me. I never thought about issues with on street parking and parking in front of someone else's house. Around here you only park on the street if you're at a party, etc. and certainly not in front of someone else's house, again, unless it's a party, etc. Even then the goal is to be as much off the street if possible if you can't park in the driveway, usually with half the car in the yard or all of it in the yard. We personally have a huge driveway - currently 4 cars in it and when we get our 5th car shortly we'll be carving a spot out of the lawn to put the 5th car (no garage.) Our neighbors have a very tiny driveway but they still park four cars in it. They move the cars as necessary to get in and out and the same is true on probably 95% of the streets around here. The only time you see on street parking is in the commercial areas and even those are uncommon. Most businesses have designated parking. I do live in a suburban setting but I don't live in a "community" or development. I don't have an HOA so there is no one telling people to follow these rules it's just how it's been done.

As for mail, if your mailbox is blocked they don't deliver, be it a car, trash can or snow. The area is considered rural by the Post Office (we are on Rural Route 03); and it was rural when I was growing up - there were 5 farms on my street though we are down to 1 - just my parent's house. Mailmen are not allowed to get out of the trucks except for delivering packages or getting a signature. I've been told by the mailman they can't get out of the truck except for signatures and packages because if they get out and get injured then they will not be covered by the postal service disability policy and if there are other issues they will be fired because it's not covered by the postal service liability policy. Word of mouth from a postal carrier so take that for what it's worth.

 

[snoopy5386]

I have found this thread to be fascinating, I can honestly say I never would have thought it to be rude to park in front of someone else's house. I grew up in an older suburban neighborhood, most houses have one car width driveways, some long enough to double stack cars, some not. Cars are always parked on the street. My parents' driveway is single wide to start, then double wide in front of the 2 car garage, and in theory could fit as many as 6 cars. But because it is single wide near the street, you would always have to juggle cars. And the driveway is gated off with only one space being on the outside of the gate, so it also meant hopping in and out of the car to open and shut gates. Consequently, we pretty much only ever had one car in the driveway, the rest (up to 4 total) would be on the street. Sometimes we parked in front of our own home, sometimes across the street and sometimes next door depending on what was available. Neighbors did the same and no one ever said a word.

Ironically now I also have a single going to a double driveway, but here the garage is at a right angle to the driveway meaning it is only possible to park in the garage if no other cars are parked in the driveway. When we only had one car we parked in the garage in the winter time, but now that we have two cars we never do. If we are still living here when my kids get to driving age we will have to juggle cars in and out I suppose. Our street is so super narrow that you cannot basically cannot park on it at all, if you do it is super hard for anyone to pass the parked car and go down the street. It's ok for a couple of hours, but when we have overnight guests they park in the driveway. We are on a dead end, so we have a no man's land at the top of the street that can accommodate 3 cars. Usually the neighbors who live on either side of the area park there but we will park there too on occasion.

 

[MillauFr]

Our neighbors have a very tiny driveway but they still park four cars in it.

Tiny and 4 cars??? Our driveway is 8' wide and 16' long with 4' high retaining walls on both sides. We can squeeze a car in it but you can't open the door then and get out.

 

[tvguy]

Tiny and 4 cars??? Our driveway is 8' wide and 16' long with 4' high retaining walls on both sides. We can squeeze a car in it but you can't open the door then and get out.

I'm sure zoning laws vary. My parents house was built in 1960, and the minimum setback from the street in those days resulted in a driveway long enough to park 6 cars on it. My house was built in 1979, and they reduced the minimum setback so now you can only get 2 cars in the driveway. Some of the new subdivisions have an alley on the back, with the garage on the back and no driveway, so your car either goes in the garage, or on the street. Literally people walking by on the sidewalk can touch the front of your house from the sidewalk.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

The fact that people get worked up over the smallest issues makes me wonder how people actually make it through life. Or just day to day things.

I grew up in the city and you parked where you could. Sure the front of your house was for you but if the neighbor had guests over then oh well. They have to park somewhere too.

Now I live in the suburbs and again, if the neighbor has guests what are you going to do? They have to park somewhere.

I don't get the big deal.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

The fact that people get worked up over the smallest issues makes me wonder how people actually make it through life. Or just day to day things.

I grew up in the city and you parked where you could. Sure the front of your house was for you but if the neighbor had guests over then oh well. They have to park somewhere too.

Now I live in the suburbs and again, if the neighbor has guests what are you going to do? They have to park somewhere.

I don't get the big deal.

I'm sure it depends on area and neighborhood as well. An HOA neighborhood you may be more inclined to notice because you may be aware of set rules regarding parking/vehicles out of garage, etc..just my guess though. Obviously it's clear there are places that have strict parking rules without having an HOA around so I'm sure you're also more aware due to that.

When we were starting to build on our lot we got the neighborhood gossip from our neighbor about certain stuff. One thing he told us was there were these two women from the Estates (the upper level of homes in our neighborhoods) that went around patroling the neighborhood for violations (supposedly they still do that). Well they for some reason had an issue with Halloween decor outdoors. In the HOA covenant there are no such rules regarding Halloween decor/lights just rules for Christmastime. So those two ladies complained to the board who then spoke to the Developer (who is actually still in control of the HOA as the neigbhorhood isn't fully complete) because of the no set rules and the Developer basically said he didn't care at all about Halloween Decor and that people should be able to have lights and such up...so yeah I may be aware of the rules and have some issues with stuff around the neighborhood but I'm sure as heck not going to travel the neighborhood looking for violations or potential violations to complain about.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I'm sure it depends on area and neighborhood as well. An HOA neighborhood you may be more inclined to notice because you may be aware of set rules regarding parking/vehicles out of garage, etc..just my guess though. Obviously it's clear there are places that have strict parking rules without having an HOA around so I'm sure you're also more aware due to that.

When we were starting to build on our lot we got the neighborhood gossip from our neighbor about certain stuff. One thing he told us was there were these two women from the Estates (the upper level of homes in our neighborhoods) that went around patroling the neighborhood for violations (supposedly they still do that). Well they for some reason had an issue with Halloween decor outdoors. In the HOA covenant there are no such rules regarding Halloween decor/lights just rules for Christmastime. So those two ladies complained to the board who then spoke to the Developer (who is actually still in control of the HOA as the neigbhorhood isn't fully complete) because of the no set rules and the Developer basically said he didn't care at all about Halloween Decor and that people should be able to have lights and such up...so yeah I may be aware of the rules and have some issues with stuff around the neighborhood but I'm sure as heck not going to travel the neighborhood looking for violations or potential violations to complain about.

That's what I mean. Even if there are rules on parking I'm not going to pitch a fit because someone is parked in front of my house. I just can't see getting upset over it. As long as they aren't in my driveway or on my grass does it really matter?

 

[FlightlessDuck]

The only thing I'm getting from this thread is...doesn't anyone park in their garage anymore? Obviously you can't if you don't have one, but that's what a garage is for!

I think some people have more cars than driveway.

Some people have more cars than people.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

That's what I mean. Even if there are rules on parking I'm not going to pitch a fit because someone is parked in front of my house. I just can't see getting upset over it. As long as they aren't in my driveway or on my grass does it really matter?

I can see what you mean. I guess it just depends on person to person but I think it also depends on the individual situations too. ETA: I think for those ladies I mentioned earlier well it's been said that they just don't have anything else to do but complain complain complain about things around the neighborhood.

The neighbors that I have issues with specifically moved from their prior neighborhood to ours due to issues they had with their neighbors. Now 1) they moved from one side of the state line to another (ETA: roughly 30 miles difference) 2) they moved from one HOA neighborhood to another but they don't like to follow HOA rules to begin with and they have issues with all the neighbors now (total of 5 homes). So at least for me and the interactions I've had I don't have a "live and let live" outlook with them. They started the interaction with us with a "I don't care I'm going to do what I want just complain to the HOA on me" speech. And at least for me to put it in perspective if the 4 other houses around me have the same exact issue with the one house....it may not just be a person who is being nit picky.

 

[mom2rtk]

I think some people have more cars than driveway.

Some people have more cars than people.

Not everyone has a 3 or even 2 car garage. And some don't want to park behind a garage spot and need to move cars when it's time to leave.

 

[Adelle Dazeem]

The only thing I'm getting from this thread is...doesn't anyone park in their garage anymore? Obviously you can't if you don't have one, but that's what a garage is for!

AMEN! I do get tired of so many cars parked on the street in my neighborhood, but there's nothing I can do about it. My house was built in 1955. It has a small garage, BUT we park both cars inside - my Audi and my DH's VW. It's a tight fit, but it works because we don't use our garage for storage. No one can park in their garages anymore because it seems everyone uses the garage to store their mountains of crap. I about pass out when some of my neighbors have their garage doors open and all you can see is stacks and stacks of boxes of crap.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Not everyone has a 3 or even 2 car garage. And some don't want to park behind a garage spot and need to move cars when it's time to leave.

I know I can't fit two cars in my garage (mostly from clutter!). I'm not saying it's bad. I'm just saying.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

AMEN! I do get tired of so many cars parked on the street in my neighborhood, but there's nothing I can do about it. My house was built in 1955. It has a small garage, BUT we park both cars inside - my Audi and my DH's VW. It's a tight fit, but it works because we don't use our garage for storage. No one can park in their garages anymore because it seems everyone uses the garage to store their mountains of crap. I about pass out when some of my neighbors have their garage doors open and all you can see is stacks and stacks of boxes of crap.

I've seen multiple houses like that around me. One of the houses they don't use any of the 3 car stalls for cars...it's just stuff and more stuff. But they park their 5 cars on their driveway.

Another house uses the 3rd car bay for a vehicle but the 2-car bay is used as some sort of a man cave complete with a large tv mounted to the wall and nice leather recliners. They frequently have the door open so you can see in even sometimes when it's 30s and 40s out. But they also park all their cars (I forget how many) on their driveway.

Right now our 3rd car bay is storage/workshop. We only have 2 cars though.

 

[bcla]

I know I can't fit two cars in my garage (mostly from clutter!). I'm not saying it's bad. I'm just saying.

I have what I'd describe as a 1-1/2 car garage. It is cluttered, but there's still room for one car. My wife wants her car in the garage and I drive a stick, which she doesn't know how to drive. I park on the street and have my favorite spot. Many of our neighbors have turned their garages into workspaces or storage spaces. We rarely say anything. After several years we all know our particular spots.

 

[mom2rtk]

I know I can't fit two cars in my garage (mostly from clutter!). I'm not saying it's bad. I'm just saying.

Our house (and garage) were built in 1926. We can't really fit any modern car in it. Right now we just use it to store the old (thankfully small!) Mustang that rarely gets driven. Zero chance of my minivan fitting. Or me wanting to squeeze out past it if I ever got it in. And that's without much junk in there at all.

 

[Hikergirl]

AMEN! I do get tired of so many cars parked on the street in my neighborhood, but there's nothing I can do about it. My house was built in 1955. It has a small garage, BUT we park both cars inside - my Audi and my DH's VW. It's a tight fit, but it works because we don't use our garage for storage. No one can park in their garages anymore because it seems everyone uses the garage to store their mountains of crap. I about pass out when some of my neighbors have their garage doors open and all you can see is stacks and stacks of boxes of crap.

Believe me if I didn't have to use my garage for storage I wouldn't. I don't have a basement, and we will not store certain things in our attic, so the garage it is. There aren't stacks and stacks of crap though. One side is organized with shelves and bins. There are a couple ATVs and snowblower in there. In the spring we will replace the snowblower with our 5 bikes.
The back wall is dh's workbench and his tool chests and cabinets are along the other wall.
That bay is empty, we don't park in there because then dh wouldn't have access to his stuff.

 

[CarolAnn856]

We don't use our garage for our cars. Our sailboat is on one side, and my husband has his work bench and his bike trainer on the other side, along with the mower, wherlbarrow, etc. We have three cars and three drivers. DH and I park in the driveway, and although there is room for our son's car, he parks on the street (a cul-de-sac) so we don't constantly have to move cars around.