Rye’s residents have long been accustomed to parking overnight on their quiet residential streets, despite a local ordinance that technically forbids it.
For years, enforcement has been sporadic, with many assuming the rule was more of a formality than a restriction. But in recent months, residents have found themselves receiving unexpected parking tickets issued by the Rye Police Department.
Now residents, fed up with getting tickets for parking in front of their own homes, have launched a change.org petition, which has already garnered 81 signatures. They hope to change the City Code, which prohibits parking on public streets between 3 and 6 a.m. from November through March.
Designated areas are exempted, and parking is prohibited for 24 hours after a winter storm warning or when otherwise prohibited by the city manager.
Lisa Klepper Tannenbaum, a longtime Rye resident, doesn’t fault the town’s “law enforcement professionals tasked to enforce the regulations,” but still questions the necessity and consistency of the parking enforcement.
“The snow ordinance and street parking in residential areas are really two different topics,” she said. “When it comes to snow, I think it should only be in effect when the streets have snow or ice, during a snow emergency.”
Tannenbaum also points to perceived inconsistencies, noting that certain residential streets have cars parked without citations, while others are ticketed.
“Why don’t we allow overnight parking on residential streets? What harm would it cause?” she asked. “If anyone says it’s for public safety, I would respond that it’s a made-up reason and ask to see data.”
Rye resident Andrea Weld said she received a ticket in late December despite clear weather.
“There was no snow — my daughter parked on the street to make room for guests using our driveway,” she said. “We live at the very end of a quiet street. My neighbor has a small driveway and gets ticketed all the time.”
Some of Weld’s other neighbors park on the grass to avoid tickets. Since Rye has mild winters and does not get “extreme snow,” Weld said, the strict enforcement is unwarranted.
“Maybe a better system would be sending parking alerts on anticipated bad weather instead of enforcing a blanket ban,” she added.
The petition’s stated mission is to “end unfair parking enforcement and demand clear signage where parking is restricted, fair enforcement of snow ordinances only when necessary, and better parking solutions for residents without driveway space.”
The petition argues that forcing residents to park in municipal lots is not a real solution but rather “a money grab.” It also warns that without change, residents will continue to face “unnecessary financial burdens,” and that further sporadic enforcement practices “erode trust between the city and its residents.”
Despite the public outcry, the Rye Police Department said there has not been any significant shift in enforcement. When asked about the increase in tickets, Lt. Mike Anfuso responded that the rate of citations was “no more than usual.”
For some, the overnight parking problem is part of a larger frustration with Rye’s parking policies. Tannenbaum pointed to the beach parking regulations, which prohibit non-permit holders from street parking near the waterfront from May to September.
“It’s saying, in essence, that people who live near the beach cannot have guests visit their homes for five months of the year,” she said. “It also means a constant juggling of cars for those who have narrow driveways.”
While Tannenbaum understands the town’s goal of keeping beachgoers from filling residential streets, she believes the policy is too restrictive.
“We need a different solution — resident-only parking, time-limited parking, something that works without such a negative impact on those living here.”
