At least one Burnaby resident has decided to commit fraud in order to stop people from parking in front of their house.
The NOW was contacted recently by a local homeowner and told about how they had received a “parking warning” on their windshield from the “City of Burnaby.”
Only it wasn’t actually the City of Burnaby that had issued the warning because someone had faked the warning using a piece of paper with city letterhead copied onto it.
“It sure looked real,” said Phil L., who didn’t want me to print their full name because of concerns about getting into more fights with his neighbour. “I looked into this and the city person I showed it to said it was bogus. Apparently you can just take a letter you’ve received from the city and just copy the letterhead. It's fraud.”
The fake warning said that Phil had parked on the street for too many hours and would be towed away if it happened again. Phil thinks he knows who did it, but can’t prove it.
“I’ve had long-running battles with neighbours over parking on the street,” he said. “People park in front of my house and I have no problem with that. I also park on the street but get hassled by some of the neighbours who want their spaces kept clear in case a friend drops by. It doesn’t work like that.”
Is the answer to offer more residential permits so that people can pay a fee and then not have to worry about parking on the street?
Some people, like David T, think so.
“First of all, I agree that the City of Burnaby should implement the cash grab that is residential permit parking for locals that have parking issues,” he wrote. “I don't know that this will solve his problem entirely, but it would at least prevent folks that are using the streets as a park and ride for transit. So, take it up with the city … “Street parking is a resource that should be available to all residents. If he doesn't get to park in the driveway of the place he is renting, that is no one else's problem but his.”
Back in 2019, Burnaby city council approved a parking permit pilot project in Brentwood, where many residents have complained about non-residents parking on their streets, and directed staff to plan a citywide permit system.
“Increasing densification within the city is creating increased demand for on-street parking. This demand often spills into single-family neighbourhoods, causing congestion and conflicts,” said a city report.
I don’t, however, see many residents supporting this idea, which could end up punishing renters if their landlords pass along the fee.
Follow Chris Campbell on Twitter @shinebox44.
