NEW YORK - In a city where parking is at a premium, scoring a free spot on the street can feel like winning the lottery.
Some members of Community Board 7 on the Upper West Side, however, say drivers should not be entitled to any free parking at all. The board covers the area from West 59th to 110th streets, and Central Park to the Hudson River.
"People have been accustomed to free parking for a long time and it's created a lot of problems for the neighborhood: congestion, pollution, lack of safety, lack of resources for mass transit," says Howard Yaruss, the co-chairman of the board's Transportation Committee.
The committee passed a resolution urging the de Blasio administration to charge drivers for curbside parking - or eliminate the parking spaces altogether.
The resolution, first reported by Streets Blog and the Westside Rag, is only a recommendation, not binding. Still, some drivers are furious the idea is being floated at all.
"It’s absurd. I'm already paying my taxes, and let them find another way to figure out to make funding," said one driver.
"I think it's a bad idea because I got to park up here," said another.
Yaruss says the proposal is not about raising money but saving the environment and using public space equitably. He said another concern is that congestion pricing, just approved by the state legislature, will lead to more drivers parking on the Upper West Side to avoid the fee for traveling south of 60th St.
One car owner who spoke with NY1 endorsed the idea of paying for curbside parking. "I think it is super," she said.
She said it would ensure space is available for neighborhood residents. The woman said she pays someone to park on the street for her.
But our informal survey of residents and people working in the neighborhood found more people opposing the proposal than supporting it.
"I have a sinking feeling because costs are rising all over the place," said one driver.
The local City Council member, Helen Rosenthal, has not had time to review the Transportation Committee's resolution and has not taken a position on it, her office said.
Residents will have the opportunity to weigh in on the proposal at the community board's next full meeting, scheduled for July 9.