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Transportation & Environment
Request for Department of Transportation to amend Nighttime Parking Regulations on Saturday and Sunday mornings to between 1am and 6am on West 30th Street (between 7th and 8th Aves), New York, New York
At the monthly meeting of Community Board Five on Thursday, December 13, 2012, the Board passed the following resolution with a vote of 30 in favor, 6 opposed, 1 abstaining:
WHEREAS, For more than a decade, Community Board Five has identified West 30th St. between 7th and 8th Avenues as one of the most problematic blocks in our district for nighttime noise and disturbances affecting residential quality of life; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five has attempted many solutions to the noise problems over the years - with mixed success - including but not limited to:
· Working with clubs, owners, and landlords to control street noise and traffic
· Asking for increased police enforcement on the block
· Convening neighborhood task forces
· Working with the State Liquor Authority to revoke liquor licenses; and
WHEREAS, Nighttime Parking Regulations have proven to be an effective last resort to ameliorate loud noise at night driven by crowds of people exiting nightclubs (e.g., in CB5's Restricted Licensing Area); and
WHEREAS, The NYPD's Midtown South Precinct recommended that Nighttime Parking regulations be applied to this block; and
WHEREAS, In April 2012 Community Board Five passed a resolution asking DOT to implement Nighttime Parking Regulations on the block; and
WHEREAS, DOT granted Community Board Five's request to implement Nighttime Parking Regulations (i.e., "No Standing") from 11PM to 6AM Friday through Sunday; and
WHEREAS, Since April 2012 Community Board Five has found these regulations have helped ameliorate the nighttime noise but have created new problems, including:
· Disruption of businesses that depend on drop-offs and deliveries from 11PM-12:30AM
· Reduction in parking, especially from 11PM-12:30AM for music studios located on the block
· Disruption of drop-offs, deliveries, and overnight parking for residents
· Unintended implementation of the regulations on Sunday evening from 11PM to midnight; and
WHEREAS, At a special meeting on November 13, 2012, with representatives of residents, business owners, DOT, City Council, the Midtown South Precinct, and Community Board Five, Margaret Forgione from DOT suggested amending the time of the regulations to start at 1AM instead of 11PM as a means to address most of the problems while preserving the benefit the regulations had been bringing to reduce nighttime noise, and most constituents agreed to the change; and
WHEREAS, CB5's Transportation and Environment Committee would like to measure whether such a change would in fact produce benefits while preserving the noise reductions that have already been achieved; therefore be it
RESOLVED, Community Board Five requests the Department of Transportation to amend the hours of the Nighttime Parking Regulations of "No Standing" on the block of West 30th Street between 7th and 8th Avenues to be between 1 AM and 6 AM on Saturday and Sunday mornings; and after six months of implementation, Community Board Five will assess the results and determine whether or not the change has been successful.