Government

Town Upholds $50 Ticket Issued to New Canaan Woman Who Parked on the Sidewalk in Front of Starbucks

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Officials last week upheld a $50 ticket issued to a New Canaan woman who parked on the sidewalk in front of Starbucks—a recurring and dangerous violation that must be addressed by the town, they said. Members of the Parking Commission during their regular meeting Jan. 3 voted 4-0 to uphold the ticket issued to Miriam Oh at 10:47 a.m. on Nov. 7 (Election Day). 

During her appeal hearing before the Commission, Oh said she had no idea it wasn’t a legitimate space because she often sees vehicles parked there. “I thought it was the private property of Starbucks to park in that location, because I had seen—and of course, this is no excuse—but part of the reason I thought it was OK was that I had always seen lots of vehicles in that spot,” Oh said during the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. 

Oh said that after receiving the ticket, she began paying attention to the area and “there’s so many people who are parked there all the time,” holding up what appeared to be a composite of photographs showing motorists in violation.

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Commission Upholds $30 Ticket Issued to New Driver

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Town officials last week upheld a $30 ticket issued to a New Canaan woman who identified herself as a new driver. The fine assessed to Virginia Easley was “my first ever ticket,” she said in an appeal letter that the Parking Commission discussed during its Sept. 6 meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. The town’s Parking Bureau issued the ticket for overstaying in a 15-minute space in the Morse Court Lot, according to Parking Manager Stacy Miltenberg. In her letter, the appellant said, “I was planning on briefly picking up lunch in town, but the wait time was slightly longer than expected, which caused me to briefly exceed the 15 minute parking limit.

Government

Public Works To Extend Setback for Problematic Parking Space at Main and Maple

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Town officials are extending the setback between a parking space and corner downtown, in hopes that it improves sightlines for motorists. Flagged recently by the Parking Commission, cars approaching Main Street from Maple Street often have an obstructed view of northbound traffic. 

As a result, Parking Manager Stacy Miltenberg recently asked Public Works officials to review the area, she told members of the Commission during an update at their Sept. 6 meeting. “They did find that the setback was only 15 feet instead of the 25 foot setback that it should be, so they are going out and they will make it a 25-foot setback,” Miltenberg said at the meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. “We will unfortunately lose a parking spot,” Miltenberg continued.

Around Town
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Town Voids $30 Ticket Issued to Local Man Who Parked in No-Parking Zone

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Saying the space wasn’t sufficiently marked, parking officials this month voided a $30 ticket issued to a New Canaan man who’d pulled into a no-parking zone downtown. Members of the Parking Commission during their Aug. 2 meeting voted 4-0 to void a ticket that had been issued to Edward Neugeboren for pulling into a space in front of the Mobil station on South Avenue that had been a legal spot in the past. During his appeal hearing, held at Town Hall and via videoconference, Neugeboren said he’s lived in town for 25 years and didn’t realize that the striping had changed in the spot between the South Avenue curb cuts to the gas station. “There was no sign and I’ve been parking in that spot obviously previously for upwards of 25 years,” he told the Commission.

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Safety Concerns Prompt Town To Move Large Trucks Out of Parking Space at Main and Maple

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Town officials say they’re monitoring use of a parking space at an increasingly busy intersection downtown, following safety concerns about blocked sight lines. 

Motorists approaching Maple and Main Streets, near the new main entrance to New Canaan Library, often are prevented from seeing northbound traffic on Main due to large vehicles parking in a spot on the southwest corner of the intersection, according to Parking Commissioner Marley Thackray. Thackray said during the Parking Commission’s most recent meeting that residents have spoken to her personally about the safety concern—one that she shares as someone who travels through the area multiple times per day—and that it came up on New Canaan Moms in June.  

“This comes on the heels of how nobody wants to lose any more parking space, but I literally say a Hail Mary every time I go through this intersection, because I can’t see anything,” Thackray said during the Commission’s Aug. 2 meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. Parking Manager Stacy Miltenberg said she did reach out to those parking large trucks in the space to ensure they try to leave it for regularly sized vehicles and continue to abide by the two-hour limit.