May 15, 2009
Dear Mayor Menino,
I have lived at __ ___ Street in Brighton for almost twelve years.
I came out of my house this morning and found a BTD employee posting “resident parking only” signs on our block.
I do not understand why the residents of our block were not consulted about whether there was a need or desire for resident-only parking before converting our street.
I do not understand why we were not notified that this change was going to take place.
I do not understand why this change was made. There was no need. It is rarely impossible to find a parking space on our block, or at worst on the adjoining block, even on street-cleaning days when we can only park on one side of the street.
We have frequent visitors; we want them to be able to park near our house.
The Belgian Honorary Consul to the city of Boston lives two houses down from us and has regular visitors for consulate business. I doubt they will appreciate being unable to park near his house.
I called your constituent services hotline about this, and they transferred me to the public works department, which then tried to transfer me to the transportation department, whose line was busy. I should not have been transferred in the first place; I want your office to solve this problem, not brush me off onto someone else. And as for the transportation department’s telephone line being busy, have you folks ever heard of voicemail? Do you think I have time to keep calling the transportation department’s number all day until I just happen to get through?
Please take down these signs and give the residents of the street the opportunity to weigh in on whether they are needed before putting them back up.
Thank you,
Jonathan Kamens
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Wow. Let us know what happens…
….or, you can just get a resident permit like the 90% of other brighton residents?
1. I have a permit.
2. 90% of statistics are made up.
even if you have a driveway and are worries about your visitors, they can tape the permit to their back windshield while they are visiting. i live in brighton and have a driveway, and do the same when i have guests. works everytime
1. I don’t have a driveway to park in.
2. That’s illegal.
Menino has said he “doesn’t believe in voicemail” and refuses to install it. It’s yet another perverse out-of-touchism of his.
….or, you can just get a resident permit like the 90% of other brighton residents? even if you have a driveway and are worries about your visitors, they can tape the permit to their back windshield while they are visiting. i live in brighton and have a driveway, and do the same when i have guests. works everytime
This has nothing to do with the BC thing — I got email back from the transportation department claiming that the initial request for our block to be converted was submitted a year ago. The guy who emailed me said he’s going to “research it” and get back to me with more information.
Perhaps they decided to do this now that BC has been given the go ahead to build the playing fields on the “Brighton Campus”?
When our street went permit, it was because a petition went around by someone who then sold her house to an absentee landlord – but I digress.
We didn’t sign for similar reasons that you brought up, but we were out of luck.
Perhaps if the consulate weighs in, they’ll listen?
Good Luck!
The way these things work, someone who lives on your street made a phone call – someone with pull. Find out who on your street is connected and you’ll find out why the signs went up. Work in the city doesn’t get done on general principle – someone pulls strings.