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Woodside Car Dealers Create Hazard by Parking on Sidewalks, Official Says

 Cars parked on the sidewalk outside a dealership on Northern Boulevard in Woodside.
Cars parked on the sidewalk outside a dealership on Northern Boulevard in Woodside.
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DNAinfo/Jeanmarie Evelly

WOODSIDE — A local lawmaker is looking to crack down on car dealerships along Northern Boulevard that park their cars on the sidewalk and force pedestrians to walk into the heavily-trafficked street to get by.

City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer said he's received a number of complaints from residents about auto dealers on the boulevard in Woodside and Long Island City  —  an area that's home to many dealerships, including Toyota, Mitsubishi and Volkswagon — blocking sidewalks with their displayed cars.

There are at least a dozen dealerships on Northern Boulevard between Steinway and 64th streets.

"Northern Boulevard is busy enough, potentially dangerous enough," Van Bramer said Tuesday. "This is an appeal and a reminder of what the law is. The sidewalks are meant for pedestrians, not for cars, and if you park your car on the street, you're breaking the law."

Clarence Eckerson Jr., a transportation advocate and Jackson Heights resident, says he often walks along Northern Boulevard to go shopping or to the movies and sees the cars taking up the sidewalk, making it particularly difficult for people in wheelchairs or parents with strollers.

"This is something that personally has bothered me for a long time," he said. "Especially on the weekends — there are some blocks where there are cars for the entire block."

On Tuesday, at least three dealerships in the area had their cars parked on the sidewalk. In front of City Mitsubishi, on Northern Boulevard and 56th Street, four cars were parked with their front ends in the road and their back ends up on the sidewalk. Staff at the dealership declined to comment.

A Toyota dealership had two of its cars parked on the sidewalk on 62nd Street, across from P.S. 152 — a practice that general manager Al Louzoun said was not the norm.

"It's not our policy to park on the sidewalk," he said, saying he alerted staff to move the cars right away. "We understand the concerns of the community."

A Volkswagen dealership between 57th and 58th streets had three cars parked completely on the sidewalk in front of its storefront, leaving a narrow space for pedestrians to walk.

"We try to be discreet, out of the way," said sales manager Randy Lacher, adding that there was still enough open space on the wide sidewalk for a wheelchair to pass through.

He said he thought it was legal for a new car dealership to display its cars on the sidewalk in front of its property, and that the law only applied to pre-owned dealerships.

Van Bramer's office, however, pointed to city parking rules which specify that it's prohibited for drivers to "stop, stand, or park" on a sidewalk. A spokeswoman for the state's Department of Motor Vehicles also said the practice was illegal.

The NYPD did not return a query about the number of tickets given to car dealerships in the area, though a spokesperson said that the commanding officers of the 108th and 114th Precincts are aware of the issue and are addressing it.

Van Bramer said he would like to see increased police enforcement, as well as "increased neighborliness" on the part of the car dealerships.

"They do not have the right to take the sidewalks," he said.