Residents living near JFK International Airport say they’ve had enough of airport employees parking on residential streets and are asking local city and state representatives to do something about it.
City Councilman Eric Ulrich and Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder recently sent letters to the top 10 freight and passenger airlines to request that they actively pursue solutions to the problem. JFK employees are reportedly parking their cars in Howard Beach, Ozone Park and other neighborhoods near the airport and then taking the AirTrain to work.
“TSA and other airport employees should be parking their vehicles on Port
Authority property, not in front of homes in Ozone Park and Howard Beach,” Ulrich said. “Hopefully they will take action to alleviate this problem to free up much-needed parking for homeowners.”
Howard Beach resident Alison Zinkeiwicz said JFK employees who park in residential streets also contribute to the uncleanliness in the area.
“Not only is it a inconvenience for resident parking, but most do not have any regard for the cleanliness of our streets,” Zinkeiwicz said in a Facebook post. “They’ve thrown litter onto our sidewalks and streets from their vehicles without a second thought.”
Mary Filomena, a Howard Beach resident of 20 years who lives near the AirTrain station in Howard Beach, says this problem has been ongoing for several years, with people parking on her block to not only use the AirTrain but to avoid paying for parking in the LIRR parking lots.
“These residents who live around the station have put up with this parking problem long enough and deserve to enjoy their property and use the streets around it,” Filomena said. “I have health problems and can not walk to the train station from my house, however short the walk, I need to park my car close by and I can never do this. ”
Goldfeder and Ulrich are scheduled to meet with Transportation Security Administration (TSA) authorities this month to brainstorm possible solutions. According to the Port Authority website, JFK airport employs 37,000 people. In their letter, the elected officials pointed out that the Howard Beach AirTrain station has accommodated 700,000 passengers this year.
“Our middle-class families work hard and deserve to enjoy the community they invested in, without having to spend their days and nights circling the block looking for parking,” Goldfeder said.
A spokesperson from the TSA said they will have a better idea of next steps to solve this problem after their meeting with Goldfeder and Ulrich.
