D.C. proposes 5 hours of free parking for mourners
By: Michael Neibauer
Examiner Staff Writer
September 24, 2009
Funeral attendees in the District would be free to violate parking meter and residential parking restrictions for up to five hours under legislation now before the D.C. Council.
Introduced by at-large Councilman Michael Brown, the bill provides that the vehicles of mourners, marked by placards provided by funeral organizers, could not be ticketed for residential permit and parking meter infractions for five hours during and after a funeral service. The measure also bars non-funeral attendees from parking in designated funeral zones during the same five-hour period.
"Mourning and honoring the passing of a loved one at a funeral is a difficult yet important part of the healing process," Brown said Tuesday. "To have to run out in the middle of a service or have to leave the service early in fear of receiving a parking violation is insensitive to this sacred event."
But some neighborhood leaders fear the bill would curtail already scarce residential parking.
Five hours is "outrageous and unacceptable," and it ignores the reality that parking is already "at such a premium," said Alex Padro, a Shaw advisory neighborhood commissioner.
"The suggestion that a person attending a funeral would be given a special class, I can't imagine anyone's going to be comfortable with that," Padro said.
There are 41 houses of worship in Shaw plus a handful of funeral parlors. An additional 250-plus churches dot the city.
Brown said his bill would not interfere with rush-hour restrictions or allow mourners to illegally park near hydrants. The measure was co-sponsored by four council members.
"I know from personal experience two hours usually doesn't cut it for a funeral, and that can be difficult with residential permit parking restrictions," said James Davis, a Crestwood advisory neighborhood commissioner.
Zion Baptist Church, at 4850 Blagden Ave. NW, hosts at least one funeral a week, Deacon Karen Coley said. The neighborhood has plentiful parking during the weekdays, she said, but it is still subject to parking restrictions.
"We've had numerous problems with our members and guests coming to funerals and receiving tickets for parking over the allotted two-hour time frame," Coley said. "[The bill] allows for you to attend the service and not be distracted by 'I'm not going to get a ticket.' "
Rob Halligan of Dupont Circle worried that the bill would further complicate an already convoluted parking issue.
"These parking regulations are terribly complicated," said Halligan, former president of the Dupont Circle Citizens Association. "Why is [Brown] worried about this and not dealing with more pressing issues?"
mneibauer@washingtonexaminer.com
