Washington Heights is living in a parallel universe.
Drivers in the Manhattan nabe have been planting traffic cones, Con Ed barriers and derelict e-bikes along the streets to claim their own parking spots.
The innovative spot savers have skyrocketed in recent years thanks to copycats who have taken up the technique on their own after seeing zero repercussions handed down to others, according to frustrated neighbors.
“There are people here who have owned certain spots for five years straight,” said Andrew Pollick, 55, who has lived in the neighborhood for 15 years.
“Nobody seems to touch them. Nobody does anything about them. The police certainly don’t do anything about them. That’s their personal parking spot.”
Traffic cones, barriers and broken down motorcycles are littered throughout Washington Heights near St. Nicholas Avenue and 155th Street, according to Pollick.
When drivers return home, they simply move their spot savers onto the sidewalk next to their spot, where they lie untouched until they need to use them again to save the spot.
The limited spots are valuable in the Manhattan nabe. There are less than 190,000 free street parking spots across the entirety of the borough, according to toomanycars.org, which cites city data.
Alternate side parking is also in effect twice a week for nearly all streets in Washington Heights, with a $65 fine imposed for those who ignore the rules.
Residents looking to avoid the headaches can pay as much as $500 a month for parking garages in the neighborhood.
The ruse has been ongoing for years, but especially ramped up in recent years due to a “copycat phenomenon,” said Pollick.
“People see that nobody stops them and they see that those people don’t get in trouble. So why not?” Pollick, a music teacher, said.
More than 18,779 illegal parking complaints have been filed in the 33rd precinct since January 2020 — nearly 750 of which were called in over the last three months.
Pollick has also complained directly to the police, but was told cops need to catch the delinquents in the act in order to be able to take action.
The NYPD said it investigates all complaints to 311, “especially those concerning illegal parking.”
“Year-to-date, there have been over 15,000 parking summonses issued within the confines of the 33 precinct for a variety of parking violations,” a spokesperson said.
The headache has turned into a nightmare for neighbors, who sometimes spend “hours” looking for a parking spot near their homes.
“Sometimes have to double park and wait for a couple hours in order to get a spot,” one St. Nicholas Avenue resident told The Post.
Miyuki Best, who also lives along the plagued avenue, pointed to the cones as the main problem, but said the influx of visitors has exacerbated the issue.
“It’s getting so much worse. It’s very hard to find parking. People put cones and stuff to save spots … My neighbors who don’t have a spot, they have to keep looking and park really far and stuff,” Best, 57, said.
“Now there’s new buildings, a new cafe, and new restaurants, which is great, but it brings more people in which makes parking even harder. At the same time, I noticed new meters in the area that weren’t there before. While these are supposed to help, a problem still exists.”
Another neighbor, who didn’t want to be named, said she has to park as far as four blocks away from her home most days.
“I would like people to be considerate, for one thing, and not put cones up, because they do, and they block and prevent others from getting in,” she said.
— Additional reporting by Kyle Schnitzer
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