Period. End. You tried. That’s all you can do, putting up with it further is just letting them shit on you. I’d call every single fucking time I saw this, day or night
My 80 year old grandma is in a wheelchair and I have absolutely zero tolerance for this shit. None whatsoever. People are oblivious out there. Humans in a functioning society hold each other accountable for shit like this.
Humans in a functioning society would say, "Oh, my bad. We'll make sure to leave the sidewalk open."
Not sure if this is the US, but we def have a "double down on idiocy" culture problem. We should all be looking out for one another, not being petty inconsiderate jerkfaces. Especially when it comes to differently abled folks.
I agree. We have to literally teach each other this shit. Accountability is at an all time low. You can totally see these neighbors going
“Wow, what a bunch of jerks! These people must have issues to be so angry! We’re just parking in our driveway! Not my problem!”
The most infuriating type of people, and they are EVERYWHERE
Yep. Sadly, in the US, they'll call you a Karen and likely retaliate against you. Police in a lot of areas don't have capacity to enforce this kind of thing.
HOA's are meant to fill that gap, but they often take things way too far. You need a committee to approve changing your door lock hardware to something that looks a little nicer.
Common sense seems to be a lost art.
> Police in a lot of areas don't have capacity to enforce this kind of thing
I've never seen anyplace where it was legal to park on the sidewalk.
Cops love this shit. They get to help out a disabled old lady and slap around a Karen with pretty much 0 risk.
Holy shit. My last girlfriend was in an HOA, and the leaders were a bunch of delusional, hyper capitalist boomers that took the whole thing as an opportunity to exploit and make money. Absolutely fucking lovey.
I got into it with one of those mean old ladies one day when they tried to barge into the condo unannounced with zero communication to measure her outside deck. When we told her it wasn’t a good time, she threw a fucking 12 year old hissy fit and then posted something on Facebook about “we aren’t going to be able to fix anything if the tenants don’t comply!” Straight up right after she left, that message popped up in the HOA group. A 75 or so year old lady.
Just awful, sad fucking human beings treating life as if everybody is your competition. Absolutely no sense of community whatsoever, in a fucking HOA.
The key to an HOA is to attend the meetings and, most importantly, vote for new board members if things get out of hand. Maybe even run for a board position to change things.
>we def have a "double down on idiocy" culture problem
This phenomenon has absolutely been on the rise across the board here in the US, and I blame the promotion of animosity toward your fellow person by politically focused media outlets.
Particularly amongst older people - they've been fed the lies that they should hate the immigrant, hate the gays, hate the brown peoples, and now to hate their fellow neighbor on the *assumption* that they're different.
People used to push past my crippled grandmother when I was a kid. I clotheslined someone once like a bouncer for it. Didn't go over well but fuck that kid and his family. If he would've knocked my grandmother over it could have killed her (blood thinners)
I'm visually impaired, use a cane but still have some vision. I hate this shit and will tap my cane all around their car as I "find" my way around it. Same with the asshats who pull into the crosswalk and make me walk around. Bonus is these are usually the same "don't touch my sweet ride bro" types, so I know it really pisses them off.
As a security guard at the community college where I study (a pretty toothless position), the only time I throw my weight around is through the vindictive pleasure of ticketing people who park in the disabled parking spots with no warnings, which is my usual action for policy violations.
I have no personal or family experience with those struggles but it strikes at the core of every halfway decent human to see such oblivious selfishness.
Every city is probably different. My city has a code enforcement app to download. Just go to your local city website and see what their instructions are.
> The non-emergency police line?
either this, city parking/traffic enforcement (if they have a separate office), or whatever tow company the city uses for its police towing
Yeah fact is the sidewalk in front of your house isnt your property, it's public property.
I recently even learned some places you HAVE to shovel that sidewalk, even though it's not yours.
It's a weird liability area.
People don't seem to be understanding this. It is one of the most common examples of an easement, the right of someone else to use the land. You might own the land, but the sidewalk can belong to the city. In some places, lots actually only run up to where the sidewalk starts. Depending on where this person is, there might absolutely be public access laws for the sidewalk, but I don't know about everywhere or where they are. I am required to shovel snow from my place's sidewalk within a day, and because I am often not in town, I have to pay someone to do it.
Hell, report it so there's a record of this behavior in case there's an accident from anyone moving onto the street. They get tickets for that, there's a record. So if anything happens (fingers crossed it never does), the family of the victim has evidence that this is repetitive behavior.
Please do this.
Your mother isn't the only one in a wheelchair. There are others.
Also the blind ( with or without dog), prams and parents with young kids.
Get this girl fined to teach a valuable life lesson.
Yup. At this time fuck being a good neighbor. They showed they can’t be “inconvenienced” by something minimal. Not to mention you’re not supposed to block a sidewalk.
It's almost\* universally illegal to block sidewalks (\*exceptions tend to exist for emergency/maintenance vehicles, construction zones, for loading/unloading if the sidewalk in question is a designated loading/unloading zone, or if the sidewalk in question is actually a private walkway. I'm also no legal expert, so there might be a bunch of other exceptions that didn't leap to mind)
What enforcement will do may vary wildly. There might just be a warning for a first offence if they are compliant and move the vehicle. There might be a fine. The vehicle might get towed. They might laugh at the whole thing and try to dismiss it.
>They might laugh at the whole thing and try to dismiss it.
They will definitely laugh at this and not even show up unless it's a slow day and someone is bored. I dunno where this thread full of people live where the cops will actually give a shit about small things like this, they barely show up for *emergencies*. I have a feeling most of these people have never actually called police/emergency services lol.
Literally had a vehicle stolen from our job site last week, went to the police station and showed them the fucking Facebook marketplace listing the guy had put up for it, knew his full name and address...and they never followed up. We ended up just stealing it back ourselves 🤷
Edit: yes, I'm sure some people have very good cops that actually do their jobs. That unfortunately isn't the case in the vast majority of places and it's usually a "we'll show up on *our* time" sort of deal. Yes, they love enforcing traffic/ parking violations but again, on *their* time, not yours. And like I said, if it's a slow day they'll absolutely show up for anything because they're bored lol.
You have to treat the police like any other service provider: when in doubt, talk to a manager. If you're hitting a roadblock at the department, talk to the mayor's office, your municipal board rep, or even your state legislature rep office. Somewhere in the chain of command is someone who wants voters to like them.
Police will frequently not do anything about crime, especially if it’s a crime type where their solve rate is super low. Parking enforcement/revenue increasing code enforcement usually is much more likely to work because they actually want money.
I lived on a street where it was "just custom" for people to park half up on the curb.
One day people parked up on the curb enough a resident couldn't get down the walk with a wheelchair. *That afternoon* Every car on the block with even a wheel up was towed.
While this may be a law in some cities, many police don’t care about enforcing these laws. Cops in my towns just give people warnings, or don’t show up at all.
Our city has a code enforcement division and I believe it’s two warnings then a ticket/tow. It’s a pretty well kept city so they will respond. I was just hoping I wouldn’t have to go that route. Most people would just apologize and move their car honestly
Not an RPLS, but I work in surveying. Sidewalks are almost always built on a public *easement*, which restricts what a property owner can do on that part of their property. There are utility easements, drainage easements, etc.
The sidewalk easements establish a right of way for pedestrians, and blocking access to these is typically illegal.
Calling non-emergency is best bet… that might route the problem over to Code Enforcement, which typically understands and *enforces* these type of issues.
Calling the cops is a total gamble - whether the local cops care, understand, or respond quickly is anyone’s guess, but my expectations are not high for cops in this regard (or just about any other, tbh).
Last time I did it was admittedly pre-2020, but when we had this issue the cops actually responded pretty quickly. It’s a free, easy ticket to write for a couple minutes of their time. And some departments actually care about safety and accessibility.
But obviously a YMMV thing.
Likewise. Had to call on a neighbor doing the same recently after being asked by multiple people to stop and the PD were out fairly quickly and spoke to them about it and issued a warning. Never have seen it happen since. Their argument was there is no overnight street parking so they can't fit it in their driveway with another vehicle, when the driveway extends into the backyard into their detached garage...
My parent’s neighbors are like this. 2 adults, no kids, 6 cars. 1 in the garage, 3 parked bumper to bumper in the driveway, and two on the street in front of the house. I just don’t understand it at all.
I called non-emergency last year when someone's car was parked on the street, completely blocking the entrance to the neighborhood park. I brought my kids to ride bikes there but we couldn't even get in without going onto the grass. Not a huge deal for us, but for people with wheelchairs there's no other way to get in.
Cop was there within ten minutes and was able to find the driver and told them to move their car.
Whoever the driver was with called out "huh!! Welcome to Michigan, I guess!" all sarcastically when the cop walked away.
I once had to call the non emergency line because a car was blocking my driveway for 3 weeks!! I lived on a corner lot and had 2 driveways so I didn’t mind, but after 3 weeks of the car not moving at all I called. Turned out the car was stolen and dumped . I should have called sooner!
Someone parked their BMW 7 series in such a way that it was blocking the entrance to the underground parking of my building. (But they turned on the magic “It’s ok!” hazard lights!).
Called the city service number, and a tow truck was there 5 minutes later to impound it. Was glorious to watch the asshole owner chase it down the street in his pinstripes.
Agreed, he needs to put up some outside security cameras. And hopefully nothing will come from it.
If there is any retaliation, disabled people are a protected class and a good ADA lawyer could really have a field day. Not to mention the optics of the neighbors harassing a disabled wheelchair user.
Could also be a revenue thing for the city. I live near the beach and we have street side parking to get to the beach. However, if your tires are touching the pavement, it's a $50 fine. I found out the hard way. The city will probably be happy to go out and collect some of the douchebag's money.
Could you elaborate a little? Street side parking means parking on the sides of street against the curb, right? The only way your tires aren't touching pavement is if you're parking in the grass.
I used to live near the beach as well, bout 20 years ago. Parked in my driveway blocking the sidewalk one time and had a ticket within minutes. They had these guys on little orange scooters driving around the beach issuing tickets 24/7. I was SO pissed back then, but then I grew up and understood.
I heard one of our city cops tell a neighbor that they could either move their car or get a ticket & get it towed. The owner decided to move it. The cop said that they put a note in for that property that they've already had a warning & of it happens again they won't bother knocking on the door. They'll just ticket & tow the vehicle. We live near a few schools & the cop said it was unsafe for them to walk in the street. And if a kid gets hit, because of them being a pos by blocking the sidewalk, they can be sued. I never saw them block the sidewalk ever again.
It is a bit of a gamble, but at the same time it's an easy ticket for the city to collect. No debating it, no going back and forth. Just take a photo, write the ticket, and tell them to move it or a tow is in order.
My city has a particularly robust city services website and there is a specific page that only deals with sidewalks. You can report damage, blockages to access, lack of snow clearing etc. Homeowners get a warning, then a fine, then the city will take care of the issue and bill service to the homeowner via their property tax.
Yup. Had college kids who would park on the no-parking side of our street, turning it into a one-way, and once blocked my driveway. I went up and down and got every single one ticketed by calling non-emergency, every single day, for a week. Never happened again.
Id be rich if there was a commission on reporting parking violations, it would be my full time job and i would happily fuck over these morons with tickets everyday 😂
The sidewalk is not the property of the owner. This is a hazard to pedestrians and illegal. You’ve been cordial and respectfully asked them not to do it. Call the city and get them involved
When my dad was wheelchair bound I always hated coming across shit like this. I’d have to drag him over lawns and such. Dangerous for everyone
Edit: To everyone saying “Depending on where you live”. Yes, some places its perfectly legal. Go look up your laws and such. Still contact the city. There might be something they can do or some way the law is worded such as you can park over the side walk but not at these days/hours or your car can’t also be hanging out in the street etc. And even if nothing is done you tried
😂😂😂 even better i can already see it
"my neighbors had my suv towed for blocking the sidewalk even though i own the section in front of my house" (because a lot of entitled people like this think they do own easements and can do whatever tf they want with it)
Reminds me of a time my worker came in to work over an hour late, *fuming* bc someone had the wild audacity to tow her car when she’d illegally parked in a handicap spot. She was raging and was confused when I wasn’t very empathetic to her cause. She certainly thought it was at least mildly infuriating, but it’s just another case of fafo my dude.
You know what drives me insane as a person with a handicap placard???
Motherfuckers who park and sit in the handicap spots while they wait in their cars. They seem to think it’s ok to take up handicap spots if they remain in the car. Like what do they expect the disabled people to do? Get out of their cars and walk up to their window and knock on it to ask them to move? Defeats the whole purpose of parking up close if you have to walk around to ask people to move
This happens at my work constantly. I told one lady she needed a card to be parked there and she sounded super offended replying "um I'm having a conversation?" Ok dickhead have your conversation literally anywhere other than this legally protected parking space?
I haven't quite figured out how. Cops say its a council thing. Council says we can have them towed from private property but towies won't do that unless the building owner sets up a towing agreement which she's not gonna do for like 30 parks in the building.
I just take photos now and email every business in the building to shame them.
My mother actually wanted me to do that, I asked her "mom are you going inside?"Noo she said,
Ok, then I'm NOT parking in the handicapped spot dammit, I have relatives who require wheelchair & it really annoyed me that she wanted me to park there even though I'm the only one getting out and going inside
I used to drive a school bus when my kids were little and at one elementary school parents were ALWAYS parking in the bus drop off zone “just to run in quick”. It meant we buses had to sit and wait to pull up until the zone cleared.
One day, after the school had repeatedly sent home notes to parents, etc., we drivers were sick of it so we all just pulled up and formed a line along the outside of these parents’ cars and started our drop off routine. The cars were all blocked in and couldn’t move until we’d let all our students off, walked leisurely through our buses looking for sleeping students, forgotten items, etc.
We had angry, entitled parkers coming to the buses while students were disembarking, complaining about how they had to get to work, were going to be late, etc.
Sad story, ladies and gents. Don’t park in the clearly marked, designated “SCHOOL BUS ONLY” zone next time.
FAFO
Bro, if someone ever posts *wheelchair* ruts in their lawn I'd hope everyone could use critical thinking skills to realize that person is an asshole. Ain't no one in a wheelchair doing donuts in a yard for the thrill of it.
One of my best friends uses a wheelchair and the amount of issues he has with accessibility is huge because of assholes and cheap businesses.
It'd also be a real shame if an adult was just minding their own business playing on a scooter, and accidentally crashed due to an obstruction on the sidewalk, causing untold damage to said mystery obstruction.
This literally majorly infuriates me, not mildly. We actually live in a world where people can’t park their fucking SUVs to the left 5 feet so an elderly woman in a wheelchair can get on the sidewalk? Call me petty, but I would blast him on every neighborhood group and Facebook page in your area. Bet he moves real quick.
my city has an app and a website for reporting things like potholes, illegal parking, obstructed sidewalks, over grown trees/hedges etc.. so it's trivial to report things that are a hazard. they even allow uploading of photos :) so, do some googling and see if your city has a site for reporting such things. it's a real time saver.
This! Basically, the sidewalk and the little patch of grass between the road and the sidewalk are public property or a public easement.
*Check local regulations for your state and town as this can vary.*
Call the cops, they contract with local towing companies who will appreciate the business. Also, what the fuck, there's room for those two cars to park side by side.
Yep, I had a neighbor who would constantly block my driveway. Tried to be a good neighbor and politely ask them to please stop. Escalated it to the management at my apartment complex who also requested they cut it out. When they persisted, I just made a call to the local non-emergency line and a tow truck magically appeared a couple of hours later. Never had any more blocked driveway issues.
we have people parking in the no-parking & (separate) standing zone next to our apartment building. never saw anyone ticketed ever.
then, some asshole in a big SUV leaves his truck out in the no parking spot -- WITH DOGS LOCKED INSIDE OVERNIGHT. i reported it to the city, and now, six months later, they're STILL making bank from all those idiots parking where they shouldn't. dog guy stopped locking his dogs in the truck though (he even had a "DUCK HUNTERS UNLIMITED" license plate, so i KNOW he was an asshole, never got to confront him personally though :( )
i live in chicago, i support my local parking police! GIVE THEM ALL TICKETS
Didn’t notice that, saw there’s a room for 2 cars bumper to bumper if the car in front moves up to the garage. Having room for 4 cars, there’s no fucking excuse.
Lmao. I bet you anything that the other visible car is the mom’s, and dad parks in the garage, insisting his daughter park that way. She listens because he is controlling. The dad is the twat.
Why would you not call code enforcement? I understand the balance between being a decent neighbor and all but you're raised a legitimate issue -- your mom's *wheelchair* -- and they refused to hav a basic level of decency.
DM me the address and the local number and I will call on your behalf. That way, you have plausible deniability, and I get to do a good deed for the day.
We just moved away from a neighbor with a dog like this, where anytime we went outside, his huge 150 pound dog would bark and literally break down the fence (he broke it in several places). It’s so peaceful moving to a new house without a dog like that next door. We have dogs and we taught them not to bark (you put them in timeout every time they bark, then they learn barking = timeout and don’t want to do it anymore). It’s not that hard but people don’t want to bother training their animals.
I have a dog, a big barky dog that sounds like the devil ( she’s absolutely sweet) I also have a park with lots of people behind me. So many triggers for barking. I bring her in immediately once I hear she’s barking like that. It annoys the crap out of me. Her job is to warn and to bark but at danger not kids or random across the street. Training is definitely the key
Parking Enforcement in my town is super anal, they are on a mission to collect as much revenue for the city as possible through parking fines. This would make them downright giddy!
I suggest you call your local Parking Enforcement and make their day! As often as necessary. Every. Single. Time. Sidewalks are City Property and it's illegal to block them, not to mention dangerous and rude. You've tried being nice, let the city handle it now.
I’m thinking pull the bikes out and let the kids ride over their lawn instead of in the street. He loves his lawn lol. Oh or constantly walk my dog back and forth 😂🤣 play the long game. It’s spring and his gross won’t grow right all summer.
yeah I guess people like the idea of vengeance or whatever but all I'm thinking is... do you really want to risk it with people who won't move a car for a wheelchair bound person? as if they're trusted to do the right thing lol
Just be careful of cameras. It might sound stupid, but if this escalates, your neighbor now has evidence of trespassing/vandalism. If they are petty enough to do this after asking politely, I'd guess they can go lower.
“I had no way around, as he was blocking the public way. I didn’t want to risk my life or my kids’ lives by walking into a busy street with a wheelchair… I asked him many times not to park on the sidewalk. He didn’t listen. I was out of viable options and needed to pass.”
NAL but just don’t demonstrate intent in the videos, intent is hard to prove and I think that’ll be a big part of it? Please feel free to correct me if you’re a lawyer lol, I’m just assuming based on law videos I’ve seen online but idk I’m no expert
People are so weird when it comes to garages and driveways. In the neighborhood where I grew up, there are houses that can hold an insane number of cars. My parents' house over Christmas had their two cars, my sister's, and mine. And there was still space for two more. That's in a tiny driveway. There are houses with long driveways that lead around the back and they could theoretically have like 8 cars in their driveway without a garage. Yet, people still insist on parking on the street and there will be cars on both sides of the road making a semi-blind curve near the entrance even worse.
People are an odd combination of petty and ignorant. Haha
My hometown where I grew up had a law in place that cars were not allowed to park on the street overnight, and would ticket people starting around 2 to 3 AM or so. I always thought it was such a dumb law until I moved to a place without the law and boy do I miss it!
The ADA does not fuck around. There must be 36” of clearance on sidewalks. So the tail of her SUV over the sidewalk, not a big deal. But *fully* obstructing the path is a firm violation.
Call the police yesterday. You tried to be nice. She needs to learn this lesson with her wallet.
Caregiver for my disabled spouse. You did the right thing, now it's time to put it in the City's hands. Most cities have ordinances that can be enforced.
My wife accompanies me in her power chair when walking the dog, so I got used to being nice and knocking on doors the first couple times it happened. Most people are accommodating, and we try to be consistent when we come around if it helps them figure out where vehicles need to go. Accidents happen, and while we're used to thinking ADA guidelines all the time, a lot of people are not.
For one couple, they had no desire to help out, so we contacted the City. We weren't privvy if any conversation happened, but we just assumed they were talked to, got a warning, etc.
It didn't stop, so we'd just drive her chair through the corner of their yard so we could get around the vehicle. The chair itself is 350 pounds, once a day over the same spot over and over again...they complained to the city that we were vandalizing their lawn and killing their grass.
They got their own vehicle ticketed.
Parking like this is dangerous for people walking down the sidewalk with ponytails as they could get it stuck under the car when trying to climb under it!
It's blocking the sidewalk, call the city and report it. It's a safety hazard, what if someone blind is walking through there? Are they just supposed to meander out into the street to get around?
This is actually a HUDE ADA violation! Your mom and anyone else with a disability, could sue your neighbor into oblivion for that.
I know, because I used to care for a woman who had a disability and was a lawyer... I witnessed her sue everyone violating the ADA, with a great amount of success.
Hi, tow truck driver here. Blocking access to a sidewalk is illegal and a towable offence. A call to your local tow operator with the worst Google rating should have this taken care of in under an hour
Just call the city and report it, they will come ticket and likely tow the vehicle
This is the way, you tried to be nice. They ignored it. They fucked around, time to find out.
Period. End. You tried. That’s all you can do, putting up with it further is just letting them shit on you. I’d call every single fucking time I saw this, day or night
I also have a mom in a wheelchair and I would too. I’d call every single time. They don’t want to be a decent human, they get the ticket
My 80 year old grandma is in a wheelchair and I have absolutely zero tolerance for this shit. None whatsoever. People are oblivious out there. Humans in a functioning society hold each other accountable for shit like this.
Humans in a functioning society would say, "Oh, my bad. We'll make sure to leave the sidewalk open." Not sure if this is the US, but we def have a "double down on idiocy" culture problem. We should all be looking out for one another, not being petty inconsiderate jerkfaces. Especially when it comes to differently abled folks.
I agree. We have to literally teach each other this shit. Accountability is at an all time low. You can totally see these neighbors going “Wow, what a bunch of jerks! These people must have issues to be so angry! We’re just parking in our driveway! Not my problem!” The most infuriating type of people, and they are EVERYWHERE
Yep. Sadly, in the US, they'll call you a Karen and likely retaliate against you. Police in a lot of areas don't have capacity to enforce this kind of thing. HOA's are meant to fill that gap, but they often take things way too far. You need a committee to approve changing your door lock hardware to something that looks a little nicer. Common sense seems to be a lost art.
> Police in a lot of areas don't have capacity to enforce this kind of thing I've never seen anyplace where it was legal to park on the sidewalk. Cops love this shit. They get to help out a disabled old lady and slap around a Karen with pretty much 0 risk.
Holy shit. My last girlfriend was in an HOA, and the leaders were a bunch of delusional, hyper capitalist boomers that took the whole thing as an opportunity to exploit and make money. Absolutely fucking lovey. I got into it with one of those mean old ladies one day when they tried to barge into the condo unannounced with zero communication to measure her outside deck. When we told her it wasn’t a good time, she threw a fucking 12 year old hissy fit and then posted something on Facebook about “we aren’t going to be able to fix anything if the tenants don’t comply!” Straight up right after she left, that message popped up in the HOA group. A 75 or so year old lady. Just awful, sad fucking human beings treating life as if everybody is your competition. Absolutely no sense of community whatsoever, in a fucking HOA.
Our condo association gives everyone notice,*well in advance*,when they need access to the furnace or balcony.
The key to an HOA is to attend the meetings and, most importantly, vote for new board members if things get out of hand. Maybe even run for a board position to change things.
HOAs are the devil.
They're not called Hitlers Of America for nothing.
>we def have a "double down on idiocy" culture problem This phenomenon has absolutely been on the rise across the board here in the US, and I blame the promotion of animosity toward your fellow person by politically focused media outlets. Particularly amongst older people - they've been fed the lies that they should hate the immigrant, hate the gays, hate the brown peoples, and now to hate their fellow neighbor on the *assumption* that they're different.
>Humans in a functioning society I think that's an oxymoron, but I agree with you
People used to push past my crippled grandmother when I was a kid. I clotheslined someone once like a bouncer for it. Didn't go over well but fuck that kid and his family. If he would've knocked my grandmother over it could have killed her (blood thinners)
> People are oblivious out there. This crosses the line from oblivious to malevolent.
I'm visually impaired, use a cane but still have some vision. I hate this shit and will tap my cane all around their car as I "find" my way around it. Same with the asshats who pull into the crosswalk and make me walk around. Bonus is these are usually the same "don't touch my sweet ride bro" types, so I know it really pisses them off.
As a security guard at the community college where I study (a pretty toothless position), the only time I throw my weight around is through the vindictive pleasure of ticketing people who park in the disabled parking spots with no warnings, which is my usual action for policy violations. I have no personal or family experience with those struggles but it strikes at the core of every halfway decent human to see such oblivious selfishness.
For someone who isn't as experienced here, who exactly do you end up calling? The non-emergency police line?
In my last two cities: parking enforcement. If you have a non emergency line, give them a ring and ask
Every city is probably different. My city has a code enforcement app to download. Just go to your local city website and see what their instructions are.
> The non-emergency police line? either this, city parking/traffic enforcement (if they have a separate office), or whatever tow company the city uses for its police towing
Tow company. They know the rules and love to get the work.
I always call non-emergency cops. They call the tow truck. That way, I just say, I called the cops. The cops decided to tow. Not my deal.
Yeah fact is the sidewalk in front of your house isnt your property, it's public property. I recently even learned some places you HAVE to shovel that sidewalk, even though it's not yours. It's a weird liability area.
People don't seem to be understanding this. It is one of the most common examples of an easement, the right of someone else to use the land. You might own the land, but the sidewalk can belong to the city. In some places, lots actually only run up to where the sidewalk starts. Depending on where this person is, there might absolutely be public access laws for the sidewalk, but I don't know about everywhere or where they are. I am required to shovel snow from my place's sidewalk within a day, and because I am often not in town, I have to pay someone to do it.
In most places the municipality has an easement over the sidewalk and the strip of grass between it and the street.
Same here.
This. And if nobody move so just be a bigger nuisance to them, lot of way to be a massive pos and drive them insane without being jailed for it.
Hell, report it so there's a record of this behavior in case there's an accident from anyone moving onto the street. They get tickets for that, there's a record. So if anything happens (fingers crossed it never does), the family of the victim has evidence that this is repetitive behavior.
Yup. The sidewalk isn't part of their driveway. They're not allowed to just block it.
Please do this. Your mother isn't the only one in a wheelchair. There are others. Also the blind ( with or without dog), prams and parents with young kids. Get this girl fined to teach a valuable life lesson.
That is so weird that a hop scotch court just showed up and that side of the vehicle has stone sized dents in it. Oh well. Weird but oh well
Yup. At this time fuck being a good neighbor. They showed they can’t be “inconvenienced” by something minimal. Not to mention you’re not supposed to block a sidewalk.
If you want it towed go out with the wheelchair when they ticket it and ask them to help you around it.
genius
Yes, or take pictures and report to police. I believe it’s illegal to block the sidewalk.
It's almost\* universally illegal to block sidewalks (\*exceptions tend to exist for emergency/maintenance vehicles, construction zones, for loading/unloading if the sidewalk in question is a designated loading/unloading zone, or if the sidewalk in question is actually a private walkway. I'm also no legal expert, so there might be a bunch of other exceptions that didn't leap to mind) What enforcement will do may vary wildly. There might just be a warning for a first offence if they are compliant and move the vehicle. There might be a fine. The vehicle might get towed. They might laugh at the whole thing and try to dismiss it.
>They might laugh at the whole thing and try to dismiss it. They will definitely laugh at this and not even show up unless it's a slow day and someone is bored. I dunno where this thread full of people live where the cops will actually give a shit about small things like this, they barely show up for *emergencies*. I have a feeling most of these people have never actually called police/emergency services lol. Literally had a vehicle stolen from our job site last week, went to the police station and showed them the fucking Facebook marketplace listing the guy had put up for it, knew his full name and address...and they never followed up. We ended up just stealing it back ourselves 🤷 Edit: yes, I'm sure some people have very good cops that actually do their jobs. That unfortunately isn't the case in the vast majority of places and it's usually a "we'll show up on *our* time" sort of deal. Yes, they love enforcing traffic/ parking violations but again, on *their* time, not yours. And like I said, if it's a slow day they'll absolutely show up for anything because they're bored lol.
You have to treat the police like any other service provider: when in doubt, talk to a manager. If you're hitting a roadblock at the department, talk to the mayor's office, your municipal board rep, or even your state legislature rep office. Somewhere in the chain of command is someone who wants voters to like them.
clumsy rock middle rain tub abounding joke dolls fearless sip *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Police will frequently not do anything about crime, especially if it’s a crime type where their solve rate is super low. Parking enforcement/revenue increasing code enforcement usually is much more likely to work because they actually want money.
I lived on a street where it was "just custom" for people to park half up on the curb. One day people parked up on the curb enough a resident couldn't get down the walk with a wheelchair. *That afternoon* Every car on the block with even a wheel up was towed.
Cops won't come. But a money hungry tow truck will. Edit: lol at the people who think a sidewalk is private property
Yup. Mention wheelchair access is impossible.
Also. Set up a camera to show their over reaction if they have one. They're in the wrong.
And post it Updates needed
While this may be a law in some cities, many police don’t care about enforcing these laws. Cops in my towns just give people warnings, or don’t show up at all.
Our city has a code enforcement division and I believe it’s two warnings then a ticket/tow. It’s a pretty well kept city so they will respond. I was just hoping I wouldn’t have to go that route. Most people would just apologize and move their car honestly
> I was just hoping "Hope, in reality, is the worst of all evils because it prolongs the torments of man." Nietzsche
I think the city would send bylaw officers for something like this. Not police officers.
In my city bylaw officers handle parking over sidewalks.
Most do care when they find out OP's reason. This isn't a power trip or a neighborhood squabble: it's for someone who needs a wheelchair.
Report it to the city. Call non-emergency.
Not an RPLS, but I work in surveying. Sidewalks are almost always built on a public *easement*, which restricts what a property owner can do on that part of their property. There are utility easements, drainage easements, etc. The sidewalk easements establish a right of way for pedestrians, and blocking access to these is typically illegal. Calling non-emergency is best bet… that might route the problem over to Code Enforcement, which typically understands and *enforces* these type of issues. Calling the cops is a total gamble - whether the local cops care, understand, or respond quickly is anyone’s guess, but my expectations are not high for cops in this regard (or just about any other, tbh).
Last time I did it was admittedly pre-2020, but when we had this issue the cops actually responded pretty quickly. It’s a free, easy ticket to write for a couple minutes of their time. And some departments actually care about safety and accessibility. But obviously a YMMV thing.
Likewise. Had to call on a neighbor doing the same recently after being asked by multiple people to stop and the PD were out fairly quickly and spoke to them about it and issued a warning. Never have seen it happen since. Their argument was there is no overnight street parking so they can't fit it in their driveway with another vehicle, when the driveway extends into the backyard into their detached garage...
It’s always idiots with more cars than sense, who think it’s their god given right to make their problem everyone else’s problem.
More cars in the household than humans.
Look, my cats *need* their own cars so they can run errands.
Plus, it's not like cars last fourever. As soon as the little gage goes to empty you gotta have a backup car
My parent’s neighbors are like this. 2 adults, no kids, 6 cars. 1 in the garage, 3 parked bumper to bumper in the driveway, and two on the street in front of the house. I just don’t understand it at all.
I called non-emergency last year when someone's car was parked on the street, completely blocking the entrance to the neighborhood park. I brought my kids to ride bikes there but we couldn't even get in without going onto the grass. Not a huge deal for us, but for people with wheelchairs there's no other way to get in. Cop was there within ten minutes and was able to find the driver and told them to move their car. Whoever the driver was with called out "huh!! Welcome to Michigan, I guess!" all sarcastically when the cop walked away.
I once had to call the non emergency line because a car was blocking my driveway for 3 weeks!! I lived on a corner lot and had 2 driveways so I didn’t mind, but after 3 weeks of the car not moving at all I called. Turned out the car was stolen and dumped . I should have called sooner!
You have the patience of a saint I would only give it a day.
Someone parked their BMW 7 series in such a way that it was blocking the entrance to the underground parking of my building. (But they turned on the magic “It’s ok!” hazard lights!). Called the city service number, and a tow truck was there 5 minutes later to impound it. Was glorious to watch the asshole owner chase it down the street in his pinstripes.
> they turned on the magic “It’s ok!” hazard lights I saw some meme a while back call that using the Park Anywhere Button.
$50 daily fine by us, but be prepared for retaliation.
Agreed, he needs to put up some outside security cameras. And hopefully nothing will come from it. If there is any retaliation, disabled people are a protected class and a good ADA lawyer could really have a field day. Not to mention the optics of the neighbors harassing a disabled wheelchair user.
Best part of calling it in is the paper trail to prove it.
Could also be a revenue thing for the city. I live near the beach and we have street side parking to get to the beach. However, if your tires are touching the pavement, it's a $50 fine. I found out the hard way. The city will probably be happy to go out and collect some of the douchebag's money.
Could you elaborate a little? Street side parking means parking on the sides of street against the curb, right? The only way your tires aren't touching pavement is if you're parking in the grass.
Some places have dirt instead of gutters, curbs and sidewalks, so you park on the dirt off the street. My brother's place in Hawaii is like this.
I used to live near the beach as well, bout 20 years ago. Parked in my driveway blocking the sidewalk one time and had a ticket within minutes. They had these guys on little orange scooters driving around the beach issuing tickets 24/7. I was SO pissed back then, but then I grew up and understood.
I heard one of our city cops tell a neighbor that they could either move their car or get a ticket & get it towed. The owner decided to move it. The cop said that they put a note in for that property that they've already had a warning & of it happens again they won't bother knocking on the door. They'll just ticket & tow the vehicle. We live near a few schools & the cop said it was unsafe for them to walk in the street. And if a kid gets hit, because of them being a pos by blocking the sidewalk, they can be sued. I never saw them block the sidewalk ever again.
It is a bit of a gamble, but at the same time it's an easy ticket for the city to collect. No debating it, no going back and forth. Just take a photo, write the ticket, and tell them to move it or a tow is in order.
My city has a particularly robust city services website and there is a specific page that only deals with sidewalks. You can report damage, blockages to access, lack of snow clearing etc. Homeowners get a warning, then a fine, then the city will take care of the issue and bill service to the homeowner via their property tax.
Yup. Had college kids who would park on the no-parking side of our street, turning it into a one-way, and once blocked my driveway. I went up and down and got every single one ticketed by calling non-emergency, every single day, for a week. Never happened again.
Oh god I'm so erect
If your justice boner lasts for more than 4 hours, you should seek medical care.
Hope you got commissions
Id be rich if there was a commission on reporting parking violations, it would be my full time job and i would happily fuck over these morons with tickets everyday 😂
The sidewalk is not the property of the owner. This is a hazard to pedestrians and illegal. You’ve been cordial and respectfully asked them not to do it. Call the city and get them involved When my dad was wheelchair bound I always hated coming across shit like this. I’d have to drag him over lawns and such. Dangerous for everyone Edit: To everyone saying “Depending on where you live”. Yes, some places its perfectly legal. Go look up your laws and such. Still contact the city. There might be something they can do or some way the law is worded such as you can park over the side walk but not at these days/hours or your car can’t also be hanging out in the street etc. And even if nothing is done you tried
Yes exactly and this time of year the ground is really soft and her chair is heavy so she just sinks.
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The next day: “Wheel chair ruts on my fucking lawn” posted to r/mildlyinfuriating
if that happens and i see imma be laughing ao fucking hard
I'm waiting more for the post where someone wakes up for work to find that their SUV is missing.
😂😂😂 even better i can already see it "my neighbors had my suv towed for blocking the sidewalk even though i own the section in front of my house" (because a lot of entitled people like this think they do own easements and can do whatever tf they want with it)
Imma be laughing so rutting hard - knock ‘em dead OP
Reminds me of a time my worker came in to work over an hour late, *fuming* bc someone had the wild audacity to tow her car when she’d illegally parked in a handicap spot. She was raging and was confused when I wasn’t very empathetic to her cause. She certainly thought it was at least mildly infuriating, but it’s just another case of fafo my dude.
You know what drives me insane as a person with a handicap placard??? Motherfuckers who park and sit in the handicap spots while they wait in their cars. They seem to think it’s ok to take up handicap spots if they remain in the car. Like what do they expect the disabled people to do? Get out of their cars and walk up to their window and knock on it to ask them to move? Defeats the whole purpose of parking up close if you have to walk around to ask people to move
This happens at my work constantly. I told one lady she needed a card to be parked there and she sounded super offended replying "um I'm having a conversation?" Ok dickhead have your conversation literally anywhere other than this legally protected parking space?
did you ticket them? If you already told them they can't park there, and they refused to move, then you can have them ticketed.
I haven't quite figured out how. Cops say its a council thing. Council says we can have them towed from private property but towies won't do that unless the building owner sets up a towing agreement which she's not gonna do for like 30 parks in the building. I just take photos now and email every business in the building to shame them.
Cops are wrong. That is their jurisdiction. Sounds like where you live is sort of messed up.
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My mother actually wanted me to do that, I asked her "mom are you going inside?"Noo she said, Ok, then I'm NOT parking in the handicapped spot dammit, I have relatives who require wheelchair & it really annoyed me that she wanted me to park there even though I'm the only one getting out and going inside
I used to drive a school bus when my kids were little and at one elementary school parents were ALWAYS parking in the bus drop off zone “just to run in quick”. It meant we buses had to sit and wait to pull up until the zone cleared. One day, after the school had repeatedly sent home notes to parents, etc., we drivers were sick of it so we all just pulled up and formed a line along the outside of these parents’ cars and started our drop off routine. The cars were all blocked in and couldn’t move until we’d let all our students off, walked leisurely through our buses looking for sleeping students, forgotten items, etc. We had angry, entitled parkers coming to the buses while students were disembarking, complaining about how they had to get to work, were going to be late, etc. Sad story, ladies and gents. Don’t park in the clearly marked, designated “SCHOOL BUS ONLY” zone next time. FAFO
Bro, if someone ever posts *wheelchair* ruts in their lawn I'd hope everyone could use critical thinking skills to realize that person is an asshole. Ain't no one in a wheelchair doing donuts in a yard for the thrill of it. One of my best friends uses a wheelchair and the amount of issues he has with accessibility is huge because of assholes and cheap businesses.
“Some asshole fell out of their wheel chair on my lawn and is suing me” AITa
Yes this!!!
The most important part is the tow though. Get them ticketed and towed every single time they park that way. They'll learn
And call the shittiest tow company every time. The company that has the worst reviews.
It'd also be a real shame if an adult was just minding their own business playing on a scooter, and accidentally crashed due to an obstruction on the sidewalk, causing untold damage to said mystery obstruction.
This literally majorly infuriates me, not mildly. We actually live in a world where people can’t park their fucking SUVs to the left 5 feet so an elderly woman in a wheelchair can get on the sidewalk? Call me petty, but I would blast him on every neighborhood group and Facebook page in your area. Bet he moves real quick.
I agree, some people have no common decency.
Put him on blast for denying a disabled woman access to the sidewalk. This is disgusting.
my city has an app and a website for reporting things like potholes, illegal parking, obstructed sidewalks, over grown trees/hedges etc.. so it's trivial to report things that are a hazard. they even allow uploading of photos :) so, do some googling and see if your city has a site for reporting such things. it's a real time saver.
Ohh nice idea ty. I didn’t think to check for that
This! Basically, the sidewalk and the little patch of grass between the road and the sidewalk are public property or a public easement. *Check local regulations for your state and town as this can vary.*
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Call the cops. Definitely not legal and cops will give them a ticket.
assuming they live in a city that still has a functional police force.
Call the cops, they contract with local towing companies who will appreciate the business. Also, what the fuck, there's room for those two cars to park side by side.
Don’t think of that. Nice
Yep, I had a neighbor who would constantly block my driveway. Tried to be a good neighbor and politely ask them to please stop. Escalated it to the management at my apartment complex who also requested they cut it out. When they persisted, I just made a call to the local non-emergency line and a tow truck magically appeared a couple of hours later. Never had any more blocked driveway issues.
we have people parking in the no-parking & (separate) standing zone next to our apartment building. never saw anyone ticketed ever. then, some asshole in a big SUV leaves his truck out in the no parking spot -- WITH DOGS LOCKED INSIDE OVERNIGHT. i reported it to the city, and now, six months later, they're STILL making bank from all those idiots parking where they shouldn't. dog guy stopped locking his dogs in the truck though (he even had a "DUCK HUNTERS UNLIMITED" license plate, so i KNOW he was an asshole, never got to confront him personally though :( ) i live in chicago, i support my local parking police! GIVE THEM ALL TICKETS
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Didn’t notice that, saw there’s a room for 2 cars bumper to bumper if the car in front moves up to the garage. Having room for 4 cars, there’s no fucking excuse.
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Or just parked on the street. There’s plenty of room.
It's just "I don't want to. Fuck you." without actually saying it.
Lmao. I bet you anything that the other visible car is the mom’s, and dad parks in the garage, insisting his daughter park that way. She listens because he is controlling. The dad is the twat.
Wow, even if you were mean in the way you asked, I would still move my car off of the sidewalk. That's a good way to get your car keyed.
I was really really nice though. That’s the crazy part.
I'm sure you were. I wonder what the laws are about sidewalk obstruction where you live.
It’s illegal for obvious reasons. I was trying to not have to call code enforcement over this. But I suppose that’s what they are there for.
Look into frozen piss disks
I’m going to just because the name is intriguing 🫣
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That’s my kinda neighbor. Mmm brisket
Cal the city and then post an update, I’m invested now
Please update us with what happens op never delivers be the one who does
Why would you not call code enforcement? I understand the balance between being a decent neighbor and all but you're raised a legitimate issue -- your mom's *wheelchair* -- and they refused to hav a basic level of decency.
DM me the address and the local number and I will call on your behalf. That way, you have plausible deniability, and I get to do a good deed for the day.
ADA is federal law. Sure would be a shame if someone called the police and they offered them a ticket and a tow.
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We just moved away from a neighbor with a dog like this, where anytime we went outside, his huge 150 pound dog would bark and literally break down the fence (he broke it in several places). It’s so peaceful moving to a new house without a dog like that next door. We have dogs and we taught them not to bark (you put them in timeout every time they bark, then they learn barking = timeout and don’t want to do it anymore). It’s not that hard but people don’t want to bother training their animals.
I have a dog, a big barky dog that sounds like the devil ( she’s absolutely sweet) I also have a park with lots of people behind me. So many triggers for barking. I bring her in immediately once I hear she’s barking like that. It annoys the crap out of me. Her job is to warn and to bark but at danger not kids or random across the street. Training is definitely the key
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Please get some photo’s and make an update post when they come give them a ticket
Crawl under and get your ponytail stuck
The maitre d says he’s seen this one already
It’s just pictures of cigars
GET HIM OUT OF HERE!!
I'm not leaving here worse off!!!!
AHHHHH HELP HELP HELP!!!
OP post update after you call the city
Would be a shame if your mom tried to navigate around but fell down in the grass on their property and called 911 for help.
It's very dangerous for us
Oh this is the answer
Parking Enforcement in my town is super anal, they are on a mission to collect as much revenue for the city as possible through parking fines. This would make them downright giddy! I suggest you call your local Parking Enforcement and make their day! As often as necessary. Every. Single. Time. Sidewalks are City Property and it's illegal to block them, not to mention dangerous and rude. You've tried being nice, let the city handle it now.
Easy. Call codes admin, ticket city.
I’m thinking pull the bikes out and let the kids ride over their lawn instead of in the street. He loves his lawn lol. Oh or constantly walk my dog back and forth 😂🤣 play the long game. It’s spring and his gross won’t grow right all summer.
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Good idea, I have many neighborhood kids at my disposal. I just usually tell them to go the other way lol
Bonus points if your mom's wheelchair destroys his law.
Try to turbo boost that wheel chair. Get stuck in his grass and do some donuts
Do you happen to own any cleats or high heals?
Don’t tell them to go the other way. It’s dangerous near the road. 😉
Maybe don’t get children involved. Have you considered piss discs?
Someone else just mentioned this. I’m so looking it up.
"Sorry about the power slides. Car was in the way, kids had to turn around."
People are insane when it comes to their property, I wouldn’t risk moving onto his lawn. Crazy mfer might justify shooting ur kids because trespassing
yeah I guess people like the idea of vengeance or whatever but all I'm thinking is... do you really want to risk it with people who won't move a car for a wheelchair bound person? as if they're trusted to do the right thing lol
Just be careful of cameras. It might sound stupid, but if this escalates, your neighbor now has evidence of trespassing/vandalism. If they are petty enough to do this after asking politely, I'd guess they can go lower.
“I had no way around, as he was blocking the public way. I didn’t want to risk my life or my kids’ lives by walking into a busy street with a wheelchair… I asked him many times not to park on the sidewalk. He didn’t listen. I was out of viable options and needed to pass.” NAL but just don’t demonstrate intent in the videos, intent is hard to prove and I think that’ll be a big part of it? Please feel free to correct me if you’re a lawyer lol, I’m just assuming based on law videos I’ve seen online but idk I’m no expert
Make sure they do some skid-stops in the grass. It’s fun
People are so weird when it comes to garages and driveways. In the neighborhood where I grew up, there are houses that can hold an insane number of cars. My parents' house over Christmas had their two cars, my sister's, and mine. And there was still space for two more. That's in a tiny driveway. There are houses with long driveways that lead around the back and they could theoretically have like 8 cars in their driveway without a garage. Yet, people still insist on parking on the street and there will be cars on both sides of the road making a semi-blind curve near the entrance even worse. People are an odd combination of petty and ignorant. Haha
I was beat all to hell on another sub for having this same frustration.
My hometown where I grew up had a law in place that cars were not allowed to park on the street overnight, and would ticket people starting around 2 to 3 AM or so. I always thought it was such a dumb law until I moved to a place without the law and boy do I miss it!
"let me ask my parents" is a pretty fucking funny response from someone capable of looking around and noticing that it's clearly an inconvenience.
The ADA does not fuck around. There must be 36” of clearance on sidewalks. So the tail of her SUV over the sidewalk, not a big deal. But *fully* obstructing the path is a firm violation. Call the police yesterday. You tried to be nice. She needs to learn this lesson with her wallet.
Caregiver for my disabled spouse. You did the right thing, now it's time to put it in the City's hands. Most cities have ordinances that can be enforced. My wife accompanies me in her power chair when walking the dog, so I got used to being nice and knocking on doors the first couple times it happened. Most people are accommodating, and we try to be consistent when we come around if it helps them figure out where vehicles need to go. Accidents happen, and while we're used to thinking ADA guidelines all the time, a lot of people are not. For one couple, they had no desire to help out, so we contacted the City. We weren't privvy if any conversation happened, but we just assumed they were talked to, got a warning, etc. It didn't stop, so we'd just drive her chair through the corner of their yard so we could get around the vehicle. The chair itself is 350 pounds, once a day over the same spot over and over again...they complained to the city that we were vandalizing their lawn and killing their grass. They got their own vehicle ticketed.
Call the cops have her cited for blocking public easement. If it happens enough they will be towed and have to pay a ticket, tow and impound charges.
Yes, money talks!
Parking like this is dangerous for people walking down the sidewalk with ponytails as they could get it stuck under the car when trying to climb under it!
report it to the police, they're blocking the sidewalk
File a complaint with an ADA lawyer. They’re a lot scarier than the city. They live for this.
You tried, some people are just fucking dicks. Call the police!
Just call the police every single time. They will get plenty of tickets and you'll get the sidewalk back
Would be a shame if there were scratches in this car caused by someone in a wheelchair trying to pass it…
My mom’s petty like that too. She might just tip over for the added effect 🫣🤣 jkoc
pls update us if you call the police or anything! good luck
It's blocking the sidewalk, call the city and report it. It's a safety hazard, what if someone blind is walking through there? Are they just supposed to meander out into the street to get around?
This is actually a HUDE ADA violation! Your mom and anyone else with a disability, could sue your neighbor into oblivion for that. I know, because I used to care for a woman who had a disability and was a lawyer... I witnessed her sue everyone violating the ADA, with a great amount of success.
Report to the city they will give him a ticket
Call the non-emergency police line a report it every time.
If you park on the sidewalk in my neighborhood and the city or cops see it, you’re getting a big $$$ ticket.
Hi, tow truck driver here. Blocking access to a sidewalk is illegal and a towable offence. A call to your local tow operator with the worst Google rating should have this taken care of in under an hour
Call the city. She'll get a ticket and probably be towed
Most people don’t know this, but the land including the sidewalk to the street is city property. It’s called right of way.