Snow forces imposition of one-side-only parking rules in Lynn

LYNN – Unrelenting snowfall has narrowed city streets, forcing city officials to impose a one-sided parking system so emergency vehicles and service trucks can safely pass.The restriction, announced Wednesday by Public Works Commissioner Jay Fink, is effective immediately.It means vehicles are allowed to park only on the even-numbered side of the street once the snow emergency parking ban is lifted.The one-sided parking system will remain in effect until March 15.The decision was made Wednesday morning during a strategy meeting in Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy’s office, attended by key department heads.”I think the storm situation this year is tailor-made for one-side parking,” said the mayor.She noted the ordinance was enacted by the City Council to authorize the public works commissioner to declare one-sided parking at his discretion.The odd-even street parking system was enacted in 1994 and last used in 1998, Fink said.Police Chief Kevin Coppinger emphasized motorists must still adhere to streets with no parking zones.”If the sign says no parking, there’s no parking. That has nothing to do with the odd-even parking restriction,” he said. “And if there’s another snow emergency declared, that means zero street parking. At that point, the odd-even restriction would be off.”Coppinger noted several neighborhood disputes related to snow removal and vehicle parking erupted during the past week.”We ask people to work with their neighbors. These are extraordinary circumstances. We don’t want to send police officers to settle neighborhood disputes. We have enough other duties,” he said.Parking Commissioner Jay Fenton said cars violating the one-sided parking restriction will be ticketed by police officers or meter maids for parking in a restricted zone.If towed, these vehicles will be taken to the individual tow company lots rather than the city’s impound or snow-emergency lots because the action is not directly related to the snow emergency parking ban.A tow costs $155, not including the approximately $20 parking fine from the city, according to Fenton.Coppinger explained that cars will only be towed if they are blocking the flow of traffic.Inspectional Services Director Michael Donovan said the one-sided parking restriction is necessary because fire trucks, police cruisers, ambulances, school buses, trash collection trucks and delivery vehicles cannot pass safely along many snow-clogged streets.”It has begun affecting people’s lifestyles,” he said.Donovan said parking meters on the odd side of streets will be bagged to eliminate public confusion.”If there’s parking only on the even side of the street, just because there’s a meter on the odd side doesn’t mean you can park there,” he said.Fire Chief Dennis Carmody said the consecutive snow storms have narrowed many streets to a width no longer able to accommodate a fire engine or ladder truck.”When you see a car skidding serpentine down an icy street, imagine doing that with a ladder truck,” he said. “By going to one-sided parking, at least we have a straight line going down the street. It’s not just for public-safety vehicles. It’s for everybody. I can tell you right now there are a ton of side-view mirrors laying in the snowbanks.”Carmody recalled incidents during the past week when firefighters were forced to park their apparatus at the end of a narrowed street and walk to the scene of the emergency.”Except for a couple of food-on-stoves we’ve had no working fires. The bulk of calls are for automatic alarms, and I expect we will be seeing a lot more of those as the thaw begins,” he said. “When some houses with empty apartments and no heat start to thaw, the frozen pipes will break.”As snow melts on flat roofs, the overflow of water may seep into the building and set off the smoke detectors, the fire chief said.The Fire Department’s fire prevention bureau is part of a task force that includes the police along with building, plumbing, wiring and health inspectors, said Carmody, expl