Reader Alix took the photos above yesterday evening and wrote the following:
Tonight [Tuesday], walking home on Degraw from Court Street, I saw two cars had been graffitied with the message "Parking Pig" written in some kind of waxy pencil. The message caught my attention because the same words were scrawled on the hood of my car a few months ago. And a month or so later-- another car on my block was also vandalized in this manner. So this is the third time the perpetrator has singled out cars for this attack. (Perhaps there have been more incidents and I missed them.) It's strange since cars park and move so frequently in my neighborhood that it's really not hard to find parking! And annoying because the waxy material is hard to remove. Maybe your readers will have some insight into the nature of this peculiar grudge.
Peculiar indeed. Why would someone do this? And who is this person?
.JPG)
28 comments:
Of even greater severity, a range of front doors (of non-businesses) were tagged on Smith Street in the Carroll to Sackett blocks. I think this is particularly recent and looks like similar style although my forensic graffiti skills might be dubious.
could it be the cars in question were not moved for street cleaning? a friend of mine has had been yelled at, by the neighbors, for not moving his car... i dont see why people care? he gets the ticket, pays the fine... more money to the city and maybe less fines for the rest of us...
I believe these cars were parked illegally. They're blocking fire truck access to Degraw and Tompkins Place. The construction on the flushing tunnel narrows the street there. I noticed at least a dark colored VW bug parked there for two days.
This seems to be the work of someone in the 'hood who has anger issues and does not like the way people are parking. It is hostile, to be sure, but not traditional graffiti.
People who do not follow the alternate side rules or who take up 2 spots on purpose are frustrating and un-neighborly. But so is wax crayon on the window.
In the case of my car, it was not parked illegally or not moved for street cleaning. In fact, none of these cars were parked illegally-- or anywhere near Tompkins Place. They were parked on Degraw between Court and Hoyt.
The photos I took were of cars parked on either side of the street. So at least one of them was also obeying the street cleaning rules!
I have been a victim of the "Parking Pig" vigilante two times as have several of my neighbors on Douglass Street. When he thinks you are taking up too much space with your car he takes the liberty of expressing himself on your window. He is an idiot, oftentimes through no fault of your own you are in the middle of too large spot.
I saw this article on the Brownstoner Wednesday blog wrap. I live in Stuyvesant Heights and lived in DUMBO until a few years ago. Here in the heights parking is very reasonable. So much so that people like to leave four feet or more between parked cars. Gives you that nice laid back Jersey suburb feel. Problem is that this is not the suburbs and it is inconsiderate. I get put off when I watch my neighbors take up two spots regularly. How do you feel when you need a spot badly and see big excessive spaces between cars? Kinda aggravating.
Parking in DUMBO was horrendous. Often people would park seven feet behind "no parking from here to corner" signs. That wastes a space for your neighbor.
Please excuse me as I do not know the parking details of your neighborhood , but I can bet every spot is a premium. If some one is taking the time to write "parking pig" maybe there is a reason. When I watch some people park I see they have no regard for their neighbors in regards to the premium of parking spots. Honestly sounds like their is a case of obliviousness in your neck of the woods much like mine. Next time you park pause and ask yourself if you are being considerate.
I've also seen this on Douglass Street. In that case, I watched the graffitied car park and take up the middle spot of what was clearly a 2+ car opening just after alternate side parking time.
It's viral marketing for a new artisanal bacon bar on Atlantic Ave. opening near the LICH parking garage.
Happened to someone on our block. Car sat in one spot for nearly a month before it was moved yesterday after a jump from a AAA truck.
'Parking Pig' needs a serious beatdown and hopefully he'll tag the wrong vehicle and get it. (Change this is a he: >>>> 99%.)
While some folks are knuckleheads about parking, in most cases gaps occur naturally as cars of different sizes come and go. Just because an economy size car was parked behind me and moved doesn't mean I've "taken two spots." (And no, I've not been tagged though I live nearby.)
Depending on the neighborhood, the more serious issue is illegal curb cuts but nobody has the guts to seriously take those on.
" i dont see why people care? he gets the ticket, pays the fine... more money to the city and maybe less fines for the rest of us..."
-- And the street 20' +/- your car remains dirty. Move your car, pig.
Really? When was there an area called " stuyvesant heights"?
Anyway. Wax pencil is easily dissolved with lighter fluid.
Parking in the area has been increasingly difficult over the years. There are too many cars and not enough spots. On my block I see people leaving 3-4 feet gaps between their car and others. The first few times I gave these spot hogs the benefit of the doubt that maybe the car in front/behind left the big space. After 5-6 times when the same car keeps doing it, it is blatantly obvious they are either selfish and don't care or they are clueless. When you live in a congested area like ours you need to be more considerate of your neighbors. I wish we they went forward with Residental Parking Permits in the area.
First world problems.
"Really? When was there an area called " stuyvesant heights"? "
I had to look it up myself, but after decades of most people referring to everything bordering Prospect Heights-Crown Heights-Clinton Hill as "Bed-Stuy", Stuyvesant Heights and Bedford have set themselves apart from each other now that white people are buying brownstones and drinking wine there : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuyvesant_Heights,_Brooklyn
Although, an official map I have lists "Bedford-Stuyvesant" and "Stuyvesant Heights" as separate neighborhoods (though no separate "Bedford" is listed), Stuyvesant Heights (Sty-Hi?) being in between Bed-Stuy, Weeksville and Crown Heights. It's all up to the realtors anyways. After all, how many pre-BQE-era residents of Carroll Gardens still call it "South Brooklyn"? "Stuyvesant Heights" actually pre-dates "Carroll Gardens" by a century since the area was all referred to as "Red Hook" before the BQE.
Anonymous April 04, 2013 6:44 PM,--"1st world problems"????
did you really expect to find issues of world poverty in a local upscale neighborhood blog? If you want to complain "NIMBY" to a construction post go ahead, but if you have nothing to ass then don't. I need a car for my job, need to find nightly free spaces and am concerned about "parking hogs" and those marking up cars--so this is an important discussion for me.
" i dont see why people care? he gets the ticket, pays the fine... more money to the city and maybe less fines for the rest of us..."
Am I the only one who sees the irony here? By not moving your car it affects the others who now have 3 less double parking spots for alternate side. 3!
I for one can surely understand the frustrations surrounding alternate side "etiquette" that so many people seem to not understand simply because they don't have it where they come from. There should be a handout or something. If the cars were in fact doing noting wrong than it's probably some moron trying to piss his neighbors off, apparently it's working.
It is a passive aggressive tantrum, at best, albeit a really petty one. The spaces between parked cars change through out the day, depending on the size of the cars that come and go. You can't expect people to monitor it hourly. If you don't like it, come park down here in Red Hook: plenty of room either way and if you park like an a-hole a semi or bus will probably scrape up your car on a wide turn.
That aside, not only is this person a passive aggressive a-hole, the person has their terminology wrong:
"Parking Hog" would be someone who takes up parking real estate, a "Parking Pig" is a slur for someone who enforces parking law. So the perpetrator has not just pissed off fellow neighbors, but also looks like a moron.
I just came home to this message being written on my car which was parked legally and when I had parked it was close to both the car in front and the car in back. I think whoever writes this on people's cars doesn't understand that the other cars move. What an asshole I took me 10 minutes to remove but if I see the person doing this I'll be calling the police.
If anybody sees the a-hole doing this or knows who it is please call the cops. There's no excuse for inconsiderate or neighborly parking, but there's also no excuse for vandalism.
Anybody who's lived and parked in this neighborhood for greater than one week knows that spaces expand and contract as cars of differing sizes move in and out... it's really not rocket science, and more often than not it works out in a space efficient manner in the end.
What a pity Parking Pig isn't written on a brick, and thrown thru the windshield. You whining pussies should learn to park with consideration. There are far fewer spaces than the number of your SUVs.
How do we know it's a he?
I had this done to my car, a small sedan. I was parked on Union Street for a couple of days. There was no gap behind or in front of my car, so I have no idea why this psychopath does this. But he better be careful— if he gets caught by the wrong person he's going to get something written across his face. He needs to get a job or a life, or both.
This person should NOT be writing on cars. PERIOD!!
That said...
Sometimes after a car has been parked the people infront or behind move. This often leaves extra room and it may APPEAR as if the person is a Parking Hog. It's a matter of appearance & it happens.
However, when you see the same drivers taking 2 spots On Purpose, then you later see him/her moving forward/back to allow thier wife, son, hubby, daughter park in the 2nd half of the spot... That "IS" a Parking Hog!
As far as Double Parked on Alternate Side Days:
a) If you double park, leave your contact info on your dash. Cell number will do. Or...
at least stay within ear-shot of a honking horn, in case you're blocking someone.
If you do NOT do this, you are a Parking Hog.
b) If you do NOT move your car, you MAY get a ticket, however you WILL be forcing trucks & cars to drive too closely to the car Double Parked across from you. If you do this, YOU are a Parking Hog
b-2) And where you're parked does NOT get cleaned - - - You HOG.
c) If you don't follow "A" or "B" on a regular basis, you may end up needing new tires or more. It's horrible, but it happens.
Finnally to the "Parking Pig" vigilante - - - Make certain you don't damage anyone's car and MORE importantly, make certain that your crusade affects ONLY those who have actually done something "wrong" because,a s you can see form these other posts, people aren't goingt o stand for it much longer.
This happened to me on Sackett Street between Smith and Hoyt. I was so upset. I was parked legally, but there was a large space at the front of my car. The ridiculous thing is that it wasn't my fault the space was "big," the cars around mine had moved. This person is an idiot and I hope someone catches them.
So this moron decided that it was OK to write on my truck as well. I'm not happy. Does anyone know who the person is?
I've had this done to my car twice now, once on Sackett, and once on Degraw. Both times, the cars around me had moved, leaving me with a larger space than that in which I had originally parked. I am a conscientious parker, and this is so upsetting and so frustrating. I really hope this person gets caught.
Post a Comment