Parking in Brisbane

One doesn’t have to spend a whole lot of time in Brisbane to realize that parking in the residential areas is limited.  Understandably, citizens take a very personal interest in the vehicles they see parked in their neighborhood and how they are parked.  As a result, the Brisbane Police Department responds to numerous complaints about “abandoned” and “illegally” parked vehicles every day.  Often these complaints end up being a matter of personal preference rather than a matter of law where the police can take legal action.  In those cases where the law does not apply, the Police Department is more than happy to attempt to mediate the problem between the parties involved.
 

THE FACTS

To help you determine if your parking issue is one where legal action should be taken or if mediation would be a solution, the Police Department has put together the following facts to take into consideration:

Parking in front of your residence:

Unfortunately, the Police Department has no legal or inherent right to the parking spaces in front of our homes.  Parking on city streets is available to anyone, whether or not they reside on our street or not.    

People who own several vehicles:

The Police Department realizes that there are a great deal of residents that own numerous vehicles without adequate off-street parking, or have chosen to use their garages or driveways for other purposes.  Although this fact is unfortunate and inconsiderate to others in the neighborhood, the Police Department has no legal authority to remove these vehicles if legally parked on a city street and driven on a regular basis.

Vehicles stored on the street:

There are two municipal codes that govern vehicles parked or stored on the street.  One allows for vehicles to be towed as abandoned after being marked as such for 72 hours.  The other allows for a vehicle to be cited if it can be determined that the vehicle has been stored on the street for more than 5 consecutive days. 

The Police Department receives numerous calls each day for “abandoned” vehicles when someone spots a vehicle that they don’t recognize.  They find that, often times, these vehicles are being parked there temporarily due to construction or road work in another neighborhood, or simply because parking was unavailable on an adjacent street.  In either case, the Police Department makes concerted efforts to locate the owner by way of a neighborhood check or by phone before taking enforcement action.

REMEDIES

Community Mediation

The Brisbane Police Department offers conflict resolution and mediation through the Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center (PCRC).  Click here for more information about using PCRC.

Police Intervention

The Police Department will respond to any and all calls for service.  If you see a vehicle that you believe to be illegally parked please call (415) 467-1212.  Please leave your name and phone number with the dispatcher.  This allows an officer to contact you with any questions or to advise you of what they were able to do to resolve the problem.  The Police Departments receives a lot of “anonymous” calls.  Without your name and phone number, they are unable to resolve the issue if it turns out to be one that requires mediation or enforcement action.   

CONCLUSION

Parking issues can quickly turn great neighbors and neighborhoods into a war zone of Hatfield and McCoys.  Please be considerate of one another when parking your vehicles.  Consider getting to know your neighbors and speaking with them when a problem arises.  The Police Department is surprised how many times they respond to a problem and find out that the people involved have never talked despite the fact that they live right across the street from each other. 

Whatever the case, the Brisbane Police Department is here to help.  If you do call them regarding a problem you can be assured they will do everything they can to resolve the problem. With the parking the way it is in town, they ask for your patience in dealing with these issues.