Port Washington eyes alternate-side parking

Words that inspire dread for many city dwellers -- alternate side parking -- may soon be coming to four quiet, tree-lined streets in Port Washington.

North Hempstead Councilman Fred Pollack wants to make the neighborhood, which has become a battleground between homeowners and Long Island Rail Road commuters who say they have nowhere else to leave their cars, off-limits to anyone who wants to park there all day.

The nearby Port Washington station is particularly popular for commuters because it offers a quick ride and many peak express trains to Penn Station.

Tensions between the two groups have escalated in recent months, prompting Pollack -- at the request of residents -- to propose at the board's meeting Tuesday a version of alternate-side parking restrictions. The regulations affecting the area just north of the LIRR station would require drivers to move their cars on weekdays from one side to the other from the morning to afternoon.

"The commuter parkers have become much more aggressive and verbally combative," said Barry Loeb, co-president of the Eastern Crest Civic Association.

Longtime Eastern Crest resident Ray Ann Havasy called it a "common" occurrence to have commuters move her trash and recycling cans on collection day to make room to park in front of her house.

"They're parked all along both sides," she said, leaving little room for school buses, emergency vehicles and snowplows on the narrow streets.

Havasy recalled having exchanges with commuters who tell her it's "perfectly legal" to park in front of her house. "We understand that it's legal," Havasy said, adding she once asked a commuter to consider how she would feel if the residents found out where she lived and "we all crowded around" her home. Her response: "You're not going to" find out.

Residents affected, too

Pollack said the proposed ordinance would prohibit parking on weekdays between 10:30 a.m. and noon on one side of the street and from 12:30 to 2 p.m. on the other. The rules would affect Jeannette and Annette drives and Linda and Evelyn roads.

The time restrictions would essentially prevent commuters from parking in the neighborhood, but also require homeowners who don't have enough space in their driveways to move their own cars back and forth.

Two years ago, Pollack, who represents Port Washington, said most residents weren't keen on limiting their own use of the streets. "The overwhelming majority of people in 2009 said, 'Eh, we'll live with the problem, it's not that bad.' " Since then, Pollack said, "The overwhelming majority switched, largely because they feel the commuters [have] become nasty, blocking their driveways and arguing with them."

Commuter Andrew Skibbs, who lives in Port Washington and pays for a residential parking permit, said he would prefer to park in one of the lots, but they fill up before his 8:45 a.m. train departs.

"Whenever I can't find parking [in a lot], I'm forced to park here," he said as he walked down Irma Avenue toward the station on a recent morning.

"I don't want any trouble," he said, noting he has not had any disputes with residents. "The issue is not with the residents, it's the lack of available parking."

If the town enacts the restrictions, Skibbs will just "find somewhere else," he said with a shrug.

Other streets near the Port Washington LIRR station limit parking to three hours. Officials said alternate-side rules would be easier to enforce, with just a glance down a street revealing illegal parkers.

Nearly 2,400 riders board trains each weekday morning at the Port Washington station, according to the LIRR. Pollack said the station is popular with residents of the greater Port Washington area in part because the branch starts in Port Washington. "You're guaranteed a seat," he said.

Residents within the Port Washington Public Parking District, which includes incorporated villages and unincorporated hamlets, can apply for a $15 annual parking permit to use the commuter lots between 6 a.m. and 3 p.m. weekdays. In addition to the permit, residents need a voucher, which costs from $1 a day to $240 a year.

Hopes to expand parking

Port Washington hosts less than one commuter parking space for every three resident permits, according to town officials. A total of 3,273 residents got permits last year. There are 911 commuter parking spaces, including 443 in the main lot and others in several lots scattered within a few blocks.

"What is that person to do?" asked Mark Epstein, chairman of the LIRR Commuter Council. "Especially in these economic times, people have to get to work."

Nearly three-quarters of the LIRR parking system is owned and operated by municipalities and 23 percent is owned by the LIRR, said spokesman Sal Arena.

For its part, the LIRR spent $5.87 million since 2005 to complete six parking rehabilitation projects at four stations in Suffolk and one in Valley Stream. There are no parking projects planned, he said.

In 2009, Port Washington residents opposed a plan to provide an additional 212 parking spaces in a downtown garage. They claimed it would be a costly eyesore and cause traffic and safety problems.

The district hopes to expand a parking lot on South Bayles Avenue at Munson Street from 120 spots to about 196 by the beginning of August. It is also seeking to build a new parking lot at Haven and Bayview avenues that would add another 20 to 25 spots, town officials said.

The town council is expected to set a public hearing for July 12 on the alternate-side ordinance. Pollack had proposed restricting parking all day on alternate sides, but will seek to defeat that Tuesday in favor of the new plan.

Friday, he said that following the hearing, "I have every expectation and every reason to believe that it will pass on July 12."