Four Coach Tour passenger buses were booted at the Home Depot parking lot last night at faced up to $10,000 in fines as part of a crackdown by Home Depot at the behest of the City of New Rochelle. Pressure was put on Home Depot by the Buildings Department after a Talk of the Sound article on Wednesday: Lack of Code Enforcement by New Rochelle Turns Home Depot into Illegal Truck Stop & Limo Holding Pen. The use of the parking lot other than customer use is prohibited under the City Building Code.
In response to warnings from the City of New Rochelle, the management at Home Depot fired Safeway Towing and brought in a new company, L.A. Towing of the Bronx to manage the parking in their lot. Soon after the first L.A. Towing signs went up in the Home Depot lot, Home Depot employees reported seeing a person driving a Safeway Towing truck driving through the lot tearing down the L.A. Towing signs or cutting them in half. Safeway is the primary towing contractor in New Rochelle and works for the New Rochelle Police Department.
A representative from L.A. Towing on the scene last night told Talk of the Sound that if the buses were not moved within 1-2 hours they would be towed. The cost to retrieve each bus would be $1,500 to $2,500 for a total potential cost of $10,000. Each of the four buses parked illegally at Home Depot were “booted” (with pink chains). L.A. Towing said the cost to remove the change was $500 per bus.
Within the hour, before the tow trucks arrived, a fifth Coach Tours bus entered the lot. Informed the other buses has been booted the driver got back on his bus and drove away. A few minutes later a sixth Coach Tours carrying the four drivers entered the lot. The drivers told Talk of the Sound they had driven passengers to the Surf Club on Davenport Road. Seeing that the lot was full they asked police officers working a sobriety checkpoint in front of the club had told them to park at the Home Depot. They had parked four buses and boarded a fifth bus and gone to dinner nearby.
Back at the Surf Club, an officer from the Westchester County Police Department disputed the bus drivers characterization of their discussion. Two WCPD officers were on duty at the Surf Club to monitor the John Jay High School prom. The lot at the beach club was full when the buses arrived. One of the bus drivers asked where they were supposed to park their buses. The officer told them they could try making a left on Shore Road and parking in one of the shopping centers. There is an A&P shopping center in that direction.
One of the bus drivers stated that she and other coach drivers has been parking for years in the Home Depot lot and then eating dinner at the Thruway Diner which was torn down and replaced by a Walgreens on Route 1 near Weyman Avenue.
To resolve the issue of the booted buses, the drivers negotiated a reduced cash settlement, paid to have the chains removed and drove away.
The WCPD officers were working the event as part of Operation Safe Prom — a partnership between the county and local communities to reduce the number of alcohol-related incidents during prom season. The use of bus transportation for proms is an increasing trend, according to Kieran O’Leary, spokesman for the Westchester County Police Department.
…some schools are not willing to take the chance that students will behave in a limousine or their own vehicles. In Putnam Valley, for instance, all students must meet at the school and take a bus to and from the prom. Police said they’ve noticed this trend popping up throughout the region.
Informed that the buses dropping off students at the Surf Club were parking illegally and that about two dozen limousines had parked there the pervious weekend, the WCPD officer said that limos working proms were required to have a County permit. He said that limos that do not have permits will often drop off passengers, park in the area and then return without staying on site to avoid being cited by officers from Operation Safe Prom. The officer said had WCPD known, they could have gone to the Home Depot lot and issued summonses.
Also in the Home Depot lot was an abandon vehicle with the plates removed. The car had reportedly been in the lot for two days and was scheduled to be towed away.
Although none of the Coach Tour buses were idling, any parked vehicles idling for for more than a few minutes are in violation of State and local law:
NEW YORK Statewide
Time limit• 5 minutes
Fines• Not less than $375 or more than $15,000 for first offense• Not more than $22,500 for subsequent offenses
Exemptions• Traffic conditions• Comply with passenger comfort laws• Auxiliary power or maintenance• Emergency vehicles• Within mines or quarries• Parked for more than 2 hours and less than 25 degrees• State inspections• Farm vehicles
City of New Rochelle
Time limit• 5 minutes
Fines• Up to $50 and/or 15 days in jail for first offense• Up to $100 and/or 45 days in jail for second offense within 18 months• Up to $250 and/or 90 days in jail for subsequent offenses within 18 months
Exemptions• Traffic conditions• Comply with passenger comfort laws• Auxiliary power or maintenance• Emergency vehicles• Within mines or quarries• Parked for more than 2 hours and less than 25 degrees• State inspections• Farm vehicles
UPDATE: A reader sends along this photo of the same abandoned vehicle at the Home Depot on June 17, two days before it was towed.
UPDATE: one of the bus drivers from Coach Tours has submitted a letter to the editor that is worth a read.
Fire Safeway Towing
After criminal acts committed by Safeway Towing in regards to the destruction of property of L.A. Towing multiple signs in Home Depot’s parking lot, it’s of no shock that City Manager Chuck Strome and Mayor Noam Bramson have done anything to punish Safeway Towing.
Under their watch, Mayor Bramson and City Manager Chuck Strome allow everyone who’s involved with City Hall, politically or by contract, that commit criminal actions to go unpunished. Domenic Procopio is still Chairperson of the Civil Service Committee after be caught of falsifying property tax documents, with the help of current and passed elected New Rochelle officials, Chuck Strome, Noam Bramson and Tim Idoni. Domenic Procopio, Noam Bramson, Chuck Strome have yet to be brought up on criminal charges for tax evasion and aiding and abiding in criminal activity. To recap, Domenic Procopio holds multiple properties in New Rochelle. Of those properties, he was illegally receiving STAR tax credit on two properties rather then just his primary residence and he was also receiving Veteran Combat Tax Break, when he never served in any of the US Military Branches, ever! According to recent records, Domenic Procopio is still receiving these illegal tax credits while currently holding the position of Chairperson of the Civil Service Committee. And now we see Safeway Towing going unpunished for illegal activity of destruction of property while under contract with the City of New Rochelle.
As everyone can clearly see, Mayor Bramson and City Manager Chuck Strome are doing business as usual in City Hall, allowing relationships to trump law! Under their watch, it’s trending that many people who do business with City Hall or are involved with City Hall in any way will be allowed “Free Passes” if caught doing any sort of illegal activities in the City of New Rochelle.
New Rochelle Needs Change, NOW!!!
Time to Clean Out City Hall!!!
You reap what you sow
Illegal events like proms at the beach clubs is the root of the problem. These are member clubs and only supposed to sponsor member events. It’s time to shut these catering halls down. The problem is that the city has looked the other way for so long the clubs rely on the income to survive. The clubs have expanded illegally and have multiple outstanding violations while the city administration turns a blind eye and frequents these clubs through membership. It’s high time to make them come into compliance.
Why is a prom illegal?
Is there some City ordinance against proms? What is the basis for this statement that proms at the beach clubs are illegal. Also, if they are illegal and everyone knows they are illegal and everyone knows they are happening why is that permitted?
Member Only Events
The current zoning permits member sponsored events; beach clubs are not to operate as catering halls. If a member’s child graduated from John Jay High School they could hold a personal graduation party for their child. John Jay High School is not a member of the beach club so holding a school prom is illegal period. It’s really very simple but the beach clubs like to make it complex and have friends in the administration who look the other way. As stated previously many New Rochelle officials belong to these clubs while there outstanding violations for illegal events, illegal expansions and some clubs are in arrears for taxes for tens of thousands of dollar$$$$.