To the editor:
As we all know, parking has always been a huge problem in Marblehead, particularly in the downtown areas. But recently it seems that the town streets have become more cluttered making it harder to navigate and sometimes even hazardous! Not only do we have to deal with ongoing road work, landscaping and delivery trucks parked anywhere including under no parking signs and SUVs parked on 17th-century streets, we now seem to have recreational vehicles parked long-term. One day I counted nine boats on trailers parked from Grace Oliver’s Beach to Pond Street and that did not include the boats parked near the boat yards. I don’t remember this ever being the case in my 40 years living in Marblehead.
There is even a large RV parked on Cross Street. It has been there for over 30 days and has never moved from that spot. Multiple people have contacted the police but are met with the same response that it is parked legally. State law requires that an RV can only park on a public street for 24 hours and then it is considered abandoned and will be towed. Marblehead police say that our local ordinances are different, though I have yet to find these, and that it can park there long-term. Also the police have said that it is not registered as an RV or Camper so that State law does not apply. Yet the RMV requires it to be registered as a motor home, which also does not allow it to be parked on a public street. Besides it being a nuisance it has also created a safety hazard. I have been in near-miss accidents driving next to it as drivers turn from Rowland Street onto Cross Street. I can only imagine what the drivers in senior housing on Rowland Street go through if they use Cross Street.
At least when we had the overnight winter parking ban we got some relief from our parking problems. Maybe it’s time to revisit that!
Pat Fried
Hillside Avenue
