State agency finds way to enhance revenue in Fenway
By adamg - Wed, 07/30/2008 - 6:57pm.
Steve S discovered the hard way that the state Department of Conservation and Recreation has figured out it can put up "No Parking" signs on Park Drive near Beacon Street and then start towing away reams of cars:
... I talked to the woman at the tow lot. she says the sign is brand new and they towed something like 20 cars on one day this weekend, probably Saturday. While we were there, the tow operator came over the nextel... "Towing two cars at the corner of Park and Beacon"... two more suckers. ...
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Parking ticket scams
The scams are all over the place. If you appeal the parking ticket, the clerk at the hearing will even acknowledge that the signage is poor or misleading, and will tell you that you really should write a letter asking for better signage, but that s/he has to follow the law determining whether the ticket was validly given according to the law cited on the ticket. For instance, even if the sign is GONE, there's still that book at city hall that tells you where it's legal to park and when. Yes, the parking clerk acknowledges that you would have no way of knowing there used to be a sign, and that it's understandable that you wouldn't go to city hall and look up the parking space before parking there, but the law still holds that lack of knowledge of a law isn't an excuse for breaking it.
http://1smootshort.blogspot.com
Tow Zone
You were the victim of a DCR screw-up, but I'll tell ya, if it weren't for the resident-sticker-only tow zones in the neighborhood, it would frequently be difficult-to-impossible for us full time Fenwickians to find parking for our own cars, what with the Red Sox, the parking vultures who work in the Back Bay, Lansdowne Street, the students... oy, the students. Granted many other neighborhoods have the same problem, and the City typically doesn't tow for non-resident parking violations, so we're lucky in that sense to be in state jurisdiction.
After yesterday's game, I was stopped on the street by a guy whose car was missing from a clearly-posted resident-only space. During our conversation, he said "I'm from Ohio, this is my first day here" at least three times, apparently laying claim to innocent by ignorance. Or maybe "Tow Zone" is just a suggestion back home.
I'm always conflicted by these encounters. I have little sympathy for those unable to comprehend a clearly-worded sign three feet from their bumper, or those who drive into town and essentially demand free parking, but I do know the pain of spending two hours and $150 to retrieve the car from Jamaica Plain. So please, don't make me sad when they have to tow your car away.