North Manhattan catches break on street cleaning

A clean record earned two northern Manhattan neighborhoods respite from alternate side parking.

Street cleaning regulations will be temporarily suspended starting Monday in parts of Washington Heights and Inwood for an undetermined amount of timeas the city starts installing approximately 1,700 new signs that will let car owners swap parking spots just once a week, instead of the typical two.

The local community board was granted the reduced schedule under a 2011 law that spares residents from moving their cars twice if cleanliness benchmarks are met. Northern Manhattan will be the second area after Brooklyn's Sunset Park to qualify for a cutback in street sweeping because it metenchmarks for cleanliness. Previous pilot programs were tested in Park Slope and Brooklyn Heights.

"This is a testament to the improved awareness of cleanliness and hygiene in our neighborhood," said Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez, who represents Washington Heights and Inwood. "But to keep these regulations in place, we must double our efforts in placing garbage in the appropriate place ... picking up after our dogs and increasing the accountability of our residents."

Ebenezer Smith, the district manager of Community Board 12, said he would have preferred a nuanced cleaning schedule for northern Manhattan.

"There are areas in the district that really qualify for this program," Smith said. "But there are certain areas that need more [street cleanings than] the two days that have it now."