Comments on: Parking Love Letters, San Francisco Style & The Red DPT Curb

By: mary

mary — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 21:35:28 +0000

If it’s RED it is red for a reason.. some cars are so tight in the driveway to get into our garages we have to back directly out.. you cant cut the curb and miss the car… the garage doors in some places in the city are only like under 7 feet.. and the planning dept is reluctant to make them bigger fearing the loss of parking on the street.. go figure so they just start wars since they won’t fix the system and the system keeps repeating itself.. typical of the government in sf.. if you don’t want something to bitch about them make our government enforce a plan that works for all i bet you the lover letter would not have been written if that person wasn’t forced to park in a garage to small for the avg car… yet to get your curb resized and cut is never to happen if the planning dept has their way.. enjoy your love letters looks like they are not going to stop anytime soon. happy wednesday!

By: fluj

fluj — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 15:16:39 +0000

There is someone overhanging my curb cut at this moment. He’s been there for three days. I left a note, saying the following: “Please do not overhang my curb cut in the future. This is not the first time your vehicle has parked in this manner. I do not wish to be uptight, but I’d rather have you towed than risk banging rear view mirrors. Most San Franciscans would have had you towed without warning.” We’ll see what happens. There are a bunch of burnouts in Bernal Heights. This dude’s car has got dents and scratches all over it.

Sigh. Trying to be neighborly. He’ll probably get mad about it tho. People do not know where there bread is buttered.

By: NoeNeighbor

NoeNeighbor — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 05:53:10 +0000

@Fluj: Ironically, one of the more irate persons to knock on my door was someone who I had merely left a note for. I had seen the car around before and therefore decided to be neighborly. I left a standard issue DPT note (downloadable from their website) that just points out that it is illegal to block a driveway (in other words, a polite note without any four letter words). Then the offender knocks on my door and harrangues me claiming that other people park there and block my driveway more so I should allow them to block my driveway (or something like that — their argument wasn’t entirely cogent).

So much for trying to be polite. In any case, they haven’t parked there again. And I still only ticket or tow the most egregious people. But, really, if someone’s car extends beyond the redzone into the driveway, I can’t understand how they can complain about being ticketed.

By: LoneMountain

LoneMountain — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 05:50:35 +0000

TO noearch …. Be a good neighbor. Also, don’t forget the person knows where you live. Jezz. You do sound like a cat person.

By: Richard

Richard — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 23:07:57 +0000

As a homeowner with a 3 car garage I have never had anyone towed or ticketed. There was a woman next door who had people ticketed and towed at whenever possible. One day I told her that it was $300 for the tow plus the ticket. That slowed her down a bit I hope.

By: Rob

Rob — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 23:04:13 +0000

What about those homeowners who paint a 12 inch red zone on either side of their driveway? Is that legal? Can they be ticketed if the are not using the DPT logo just red paint?

By: fluj

fluj — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 15:13:13 +0000

Yeah, no kidding. I’ve had the same thing happen. “Knock knock” “How could you ticket me?” “You could have just written a note”

Are you kidding? I could/should have had you towed! I can’t get out of my garage!

People are unbelievable sometimes.

By: NoeNeighbor

NoeNeighbor — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 05:40:11 +0000

Uhh no, I don’t have a ridiculous red zone and actually have a narrow driveway. And, in fact, I only call DPT when people are parked so that they extend beyond the 12 inch red zone into my driveway. Yet, entitled/clueless drivers still sometimes knock on my door complaining about being ticketed or towed.

The bottom line is that parking in a red zone is illegal. If you decide that the zone is “ridiculous” or “it is still physicially possible (I think) for the car to get out of the driveway” and conclude that you are therefore entitled to park there, you are taking your chances. And if you then whine about a ticket or a tow, you are the one who is lame.

By: asad

asad — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 05:09:41 +0000

Amazing how you can get a drivers license without understanding what a red zone is. It means don’t park there. That’s it, you don’t get to argue it. If you don’t like the rules then stop driving or pay the tickets.

By: who

who — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 00:37:44 +0000

^ I assume you have ridiculous red zones like the place I got a ticket.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=19th+and+noe,+san+francisco,+ca&sll=37.509726,-95.712891&sspn=60.74449,135.351563&ie=UTF8&ll=37.759504,-122.432008&spn=0.000946,0.002065&t=h&z=20&layer=c&cbll=37.759479,-122.432011&panoid=0yzwzkqTQrNAc25TxWTiMw&cbp=12,8.63,,0,14.82

Those red zones aren’t even on the driveway! The bushes hang out farther than they do and the garage isn’t even as wide as the space between the red. What is the point?