Manhattan Beach Residents Feel Ambushed By Holiday Parking Tickets, Want Them Dismissed

Several Manhattan Beach residents were baffled by tickets they received on Friday, July 3, for violating the neighborhood’s ban on street parking during holidays and weekends. Many said they were unaware the holiday weekend started a day before the 4th of July and want the tickets to be dismissed.

“In this instance, the tickets should be thrown out,” said Community Board 15 Chairwoman Theresa Scavo.

Scavo explained that during the summer street parking is banned in Manhattan Beach on weekends and holidays in order to keep out-of-town beach goers from clogging up the roads. However, she argued that people were justified in their confusion because government services, like mail delivery and sanitation pick up, were still functioning on Friday.

“I was out on Kings Highway and thought every meter was broken because I didn’t realize they had holiday rules and regulations in effect,” she said. “So someone who lives where there are parking restrictions, as in Manhattan Beach, how would you know that July 3 is a holiday?”

Sandra Wilde, who has lived in the neighborhood for 41 years, said she could have easily kept her car in the driveway Thursday night. But during weekdays, she parks on the street in order to not block her husband’s vehicle before he goes to work in the morning. She said she was stunned to find a parking ticket for $60 on her car window Friday morning.

“It’s called July 4th. Why would you give me a parking ticket on July 3? It’s insane,” she said. “I always felt like we got jipped on Saturday holidays because I never heard of having a Friday off for a Saturday holiday.”

A spokesman for the DOT pointed out the department had marked on their calendar that July 3 and 4 were holidays.

However, Felix Feygin, whose ticket was issued at 2:16am on Friday morning, said the city should do more to eliminate confusion. He said that notices could be posted in the community or that the parking signs could be changed to clearly show when the city is observing holidays.

Although the NYPD did not respond to a request for the number of tickets issued in Manhattan Beach on July 3, City Councilman Chaim Deutsch, who represents the area, said at least a dozen people had contacted his office about the holiday parking tickets.

Deutsch said the DOT was looking into his request to have signs changed to show that parking regulations were in effect on “observed” holidays. But he cautioned that it was unlikely the tickets would be dismissed.

“A number of years ago, they requested for the area of Manhattan Beach to have signage for no parking Saturday, Sunday, and holidays. So people might say: ‘You know something? This is what they wanted, let them pay,'” Deutsch said. “But my feeling is that any time there is some type of confusion, especially when there are only a few locations in the city that have these regulations, I need to advocate for my constituents and do everything possible in order to at least try to change the signs.”