QUALITY OF LIFE: Parking Problems in New Rochelle Just a Symptom of Larger Issue



Parking in residential areas of this city has become a real problem. Too many cars, too few spots and the problem is exacerbated in bad weather. 


Current zoning code allows for single family homeowners to rent a room to up to two people in their home with no cooking facility. This can add up to two more cars to homes in neighborhoods that already lack sufficient parking.

 While the zoning code might have made sense 75 years ago when owning an automobile was a luxury, today many families have two, three or more cars in a single household. Reflecting this, many New Rochelle neighborhoods with homes on small lots have just a small driveway and single car garage.



I reached out to the New Rochelle Building Bureau about this problem. They admit they have no idea who rents rooms and to how many people. There is no required reporting of lease agreements or rental income so the landlord gets “free money” by exceeding occupancy limits. The city claims there is nothing to be done.

I do not believe this to be the case. I reached out to Shari Rackman, who represents City Council District 6 where I live. We have spoken twice and we and we have come up with several ideas that may have a very positive impact on this problem. Getting a handle on who rents, where they can park are really the issues that will be addressed.

The zoning code needs to be changed. Renting rooms in New Rochelle single family homes needs to be better controlled. It is my hope that the City Council will begin to look at this issue and to upgrade policies that clearly need upgrading. The issue of street parking when there is a snowfall greater than two inches will also be addressed. 


Without more involvement from the City, policing this problem then because the responsibility of neighbors are left to deal with the illegal tenant’s cars, trash, visitors, pets and noise violations.



Our weak zoning code and the lack of enforcement of even what is on the books, effectively allows for single family homes in New Rochelle to become Single Room Occupancy venues.

 Why not change the zoning code to reflect the realities of modern day life?

 What about the common good here? 

If a homeowner wants to build a fence he needs a variance. Why note require a homeowner who wants to rent rooms to likewise obtain a variance — and fine them if they don’t. And why not require periodic renewals? 

Turning a home into an SRO brings transient strangers into a neighborhood, people who are not stakeholders in the appearance and quality of life in a neighborhood. Why not let the neighbors who will be affected have a voice, before it happens?



In my own neighborhood, behind New Rochelle High Schooll on Webster Avenue, my little side street is strewn with the cars of people who do not live on my street. People from across the avenue, down the block, from literally anywhere take spaces. They prevent plows from properly clearing the streets and they do so with impunity simply because they are too lazy to use their driveways or move cars around. We have non-residents preventing proper snow plowing and so our roads become an impassable mess.

Ask the City and they will tell you that nothing can be done.

 In White Plains all cars must be off the street by 2 a.m. We need a similar policy.

White Plains prohibits on-street parking during snow emergencies. All cars must be off snow emergency streets so snowplow drivers can do their job quickly and effectively. If you violate the White Plains policy, you will be plowed in and you will receive a summons. New Rochelle has the same policy but rarely enforces it — the lack of a 2 a.m. policy in New Rochelle plays a major role in that.

Pelham and a number of other towns have similar parking prohibitions. The residents all manage to survive. Not here.

We did however lose our loose-leaf collection last fall. The issues are similar in many ways but for some reason one was a priority while the other is not.

 I believe that this situation needs to be brought to the forefront.

 I am sure there are quite a few others in New Rochelle who experience what I have experienced.

 I believe that the City of New Rochelle needs to become more proactive and more responsive to the complaints of neighbors of homeowners who take advantage and overstep boundaries.

In New Rochelle, there is a “72 hour rule”. If someone parks their car on the street and fails to move it for 72 hours, the police can notice the owner that the car is subject to being treated as abandoned and so it can be towed. I have tried. I have never seen a car towed. In one instance, a person living on a street near my own parked their vehicle, pulled a suitcase from the trunk and left, apparently leaving for a vacation. Despite my best efforts to have the car removed, the City allowed the vehicle to remain for 8 days and still did not tow the car.



When it comes to these quality of life issues, many people who live in or visit this City believe they can do whatever they want with impunity. And they are largely right. What all of this boils down to is quality of life. Our elected officials need to begin to understand that people move to or from a town because of quality of life issues. Parking is a major issue in neighborhoods throughout this city. It needs to be addressed and the homeowners, even taking it down to a block level need to have their little corner of the world protected. 

Parking is just one of the most visible examples. There are so many others to be mentioned: littering, blasting radios, building code violations. Quality of life is a commodity in very short supply in this city. This needs to change. The people sitting on the City Council need to understand that issues like the parking problem are serious and that reasonable solutions need to be found and implemented for the common good.

I am curious as to whether my fellow residents share my concern.