Parking problems in Morningside | News

ATLANTA -- New parking problems are being reported in Atlanta's Morningside neighborhood. This comes just a day after the City's Transportation Committee addressed 11Alive's Parking Bill of Rights.

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"Street parking, like everywhere else in this area, is a hot commodity if you need to park somewhere," Morningside School volunteer Julia Rafter told us, while standing along Barclay Place.

On Wednesday, a group of drivers got parking tickets in an area where they had parked before without trouble.

"The group of us at the school just felt accosted. You couldn't at least say 'Here's a warning; we're now going to start enforcing this area'?" Rafter asked.

Drivers complain the signs, which indicate no parking to the corner of Barclay Place and E Rock Springs Road NE, are too far back. One sign is obscured, and there's no yellow painting on the curb to indicate it's a restricted parking area.

There is limited parking in the area, and residents had complained about their driveways being blocked. 

However, people living in the neighborhood and some of those who work at the school say the parking restriction hadn't been enforced in years.

11Alive sent the photos, along with Rafter's complaint, to the City and PARKatlanta. They are looking into them. 

Atlanta's Public Works Department says the No Parking restrictions along the street are meant to improve visibility as drivers approach the intersection where young children cross. 

The City says one sign is all that's needed to enforce a No Parking restriction. However, to make the restriction clearer, the City is considering painting the curb yellow all the way from the sign back to intersection.

Next week the City's Transportation Committee will hold a special hearing on 11Alive's Parking Bill of Rights. It wants to hear from the public before amending PARKatlanta's contract to try to hold the company more accountable.