Parking problem on school street "an accident waiting to happen" says resident

A bottleneck of traffic on Stones Street by Alliance French Immersion Public School has the community steaming that no-one is taking their problem seriously...not the city and not the Near North School Board.

There's no area for parents to pick their kids up safely, so cars are parked along the street blocking driveways and creating a safety hazard they complain.

Scott Grant lives the nightmare every beginning and end of the school day.

"It's a combination of overcrowding and parents that just don't seem to care."

The school has sent out bulletins to parents but the parents ignore them, he states.

"Some have parked right inside our driveways. You can clearly tell its a driveway and people park right in front of it." 

Cars have been damaged by the congestion and Grant says, "It's only a matter of time before a kid gets hit because you have kids walking around vehicles that are parked so close to the street you can't see around them. It's just a matter of time." 

And Grant says complaints to City Hall have been ignored.

"The city is not very helpful at all. In the wintertime they put parking signs up on one side of the street. Even in the summer, with people parking on both sides it becomes a one-way street, yet you have people trying to go both ways. In the winter it's worse with the snowbanks. They've sent out parking attendants only twice in five years and it's only been when we called otherwise we don't see anybody.

"Come by at 2:30 and hand out some tickets. That's how these people will get the point but they don't really care it seems.

"One neighbour had to put rocks on his lawn because people kept parking on it and ruining his lawn. The city says there is nothing they can do about it."

Grant says the school paid big money to install a parking lot but it's only for use by teachers and had nothing to do with improving the traffic flow at the school.

But Chair David Thompson says the school board is taking the situation seriously.

"We're certainly very sensitive and aware of the neighbourhood and traffic flow. We spent over a million dollars on the parking lot at the top and we have had some success in eliminating some of the problems, but it is an issue and we're trying to deal with it but the long-term fix is still a long-term fix."

Thompson says school teachers are reminding parents daily where to drop kids off and the new lot gives teachers a place to park without adding to the congestion.

"We're trying to be as accommodating as possible."