Boston Deploys ‘Be Like Sebastian’ Campaign to De-Escalate Winter Parking Battles
Boston, Massachusetts Yanfei Sun / Shutterstock.com
When is it OK to use a chair to save a dug-out parking space following a blizzard?
In some cities, it’s not uncommon to see residents using of a chair or other sizable household item to save an on-street parking space that they had dug out for subsequent use following large winter storms that dump a lot of snow.
The practice is often respected out of courtesy by drivers even if it isn’t actually authorized by municipal authorities, who usually have enough to worry about when it comes to the politics of snow removal. City-level sensitivities regarding saving a parking space can vary from place to place.
During last month’s large blizzard, one space-saving District of Columbia resident used a detailed 96-word note in an attempt to persuade drivers not to park in the dug-out space.
As The Washington Post reported on the post-blizzard cold war over parking spaces, which turned hot on social media:
“I put in five hours of excruciating work, and I knew that no one else would be leaving. For me, I was just saying, ‘Hey, out of courtesy and respect, for a day or two, please allow me to go to the studio,’ ” said [parking space-saving notewriter Nate] Bergman, who is a musician. “I didn’t realize this would turn into a polarizing hate-fest.” Maybe he should have. A man used a nail gun to shoot out the tires of a parking intruder after a 2013 storm in Boston. During that same snow emergency, a man was charged with assault after allegedly breaking the jaw of a 66-year-old driver who parked in a “saved” space.
This winter, Boston City Hall has tried a social media campaign to de-escalate post-storm parking space tensions.
It involves a chair named Sebastian, modeled after the “Be Like Bill” social media meme.
The basic gist: In Boston, it’s OK to use chairs to save parking spaces during snow emergencies but only for two days following the conclusion of a declared emergency.
Here’s the message in detail:
This is Sebastian. Sebastian is a space saver. Sebastian is only used during a declared snow emergency in Boston. Sebastian goes away 48 hours after a snow emergency is over. Be like Sebastian.
Those are good words to live by in Beantown.
And the Sebastian reminder is a good one. A gusty winter storm system pushed through portions Massachusetts on Monday, but there’s no declared snow emergency Boston, according to City Hall.
So keep your chairs out of parking spaces, Boston residents.
Among Boston’s other social media outreach to encourage good behavior when it comes to snow: Courteous reminders to shovel sidewalks.
Michael Grass is Executive Editor of Government Executive’s Route Fifty.
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