Woodstock night-time parking

Gus Philpott
Woodstock Advocate
August 1, 2011

How is the prohibition on overnight street parking enforced in Woodstock?

One resident wrote to me that a vehicle was parked in front of the house at 2:05AM and was ticketed. They found the ticket on the vehicle at 2:10AM.

What’s wrong with that?

Parking is prohibited on Woodstock streets between the hours of 2:00AM and 6:00AM, EXCEPT that 30-minute parking is allowed.

So, if your car is parked there at night, you have until at least 2:30AM to move it. And that would mean that the cop would have to come by at 2:00AM, mark your tire, and return in exactly 30 minutes. He’d have to observe the chalk mark on the tire tread (evidence that the vehicle had not been moved) before he could legally issue a parking citation. In other words, he has to “know” that the vehicle was parked longer than 30 minutes between 2:00-6:00AM. (Do they chalk tires or just "assume" the car hasn't been moved?)

If a vehicle is to be parked on the street overnight, there must be a reason. Reasons include the driveway is full of other vehicles (let’s say, you are hosting a family reunion or family has come into town for a funeral or graduation) or the driveway is under repair. You call the P.D. to tell them that a car (description and license plate number) will be on the street.

You don’t really need to ask permission. The City allows this. So what you’ll be doing is informing the telecommunicator, who is to inform the beat officer, that a vehicle will be there.

If you have questions about this privilege, call your beat officer at 815.338.2131