No one likes getting ‘the boot’. No one likes seeing the boot either, especially when it’s on your car. York is one step closer to allowing cars to be booted in the city. Your vehicle can be booted if parked on public streets if you have multiple unpaid parking tickets, letting the meter run out on a private lot, or parking where you shouldn’t.
After months of discussion city council members have finalized legislation that regulates the practice. “Businesses in town have asked for this and we are trying to hear them,” said council member David Satterlee. Under the ordinance it will cost $60 to have a boot removed. In private lots, there has to be adequate amounts of signs notifying people the lots are being patrolled. “So people are able to, if they are parked in a space, they are able to see within five spaces- clarifying what could happen,” said Satterlee.
Waiting periods
One of the primary concerns raised is the waiting periods. “If we’re the company that’s taking care of a metered lot, we have 12- 36 hours before we can move a vehicle. The boot guys have to wait 15 minutes on a metered private lot,” said Michael Darrah, who is the President of Darrah’s Automotive & Recycling Inc.
In a private lot towing companies have to wait 15 minutes before removing a car. To boot, there is not wait. “There’s a difference there because with towing they are taking the car away, and it’s a lot more expensive to get it back and there’s a lot more inconvenience one of the advantages of booting,” said Satterlee.
Michael Darrah has been in the towing business in York since 1999. He plans to apply for the booting license if council approves the ordinance. “Only for the need to use a boot, if the vehicle is hard to remove from a parking space, or impossible to move,” said Darrah. “Most of the customers that we have now want the vehicle removed. They don’t want it sitting there because their tenant is sitting there waiting to park in that space.”
Darrah said he worries without certain waiting restrictions the practice could become predatory. “I hope it doesn’t scare people away from the city. We won’t patrol lots. That’s now part of what we do. Read the signs, look where you park, don’t pull into private lots, and if you see any kind of a no parking sign don’t park there,” said Darrah.
City Council members will vote on the ordinance Tuesday March 18, 2014 during their evening meeting. “We don’t want to frustrate people, we want people to come downtown. But, we want people to respect the rules and laws that everybody is following to the benefit of everybody,” said Satterlee.
To watch the City Council meeting and the vote on the ordinance (March 18th) click here
To watch previous meetings click here
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I hope it doesn’t scare people away from the city.
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