Brookside School Parking Irks Residents of Westwood Street

Residents of Cottage Place in Westwood said they are fed up with parents using their street to drop off and pick up students from Brookside Elementary School, and they are asking the borough to do something about the problem.

"They just don't care," Cottage Place resident Scott Mockel said. "You pull out of your driveway and they honk at you."

Parents who park on the street have to make U-turns either down at the dead end — which is not a cul-de-sac — or in residents' driveways. Residents said they were both annoyed at the inconvenience of having many people parked on their street twice a day, and also concerned about safety with all the traffic.

Some residents, like John McLoughlin, have begun parking at the end of their driveways to stop parents from pulling in. In one recent incident, McLoughlin said a man knocked over his wheelbarrow full of stones after picking up kids. McLoughlin called police to report the incident.

"As far as I'm concerned, that's a hit-and-run," McLoughlin said.

Parents who park on the street told Patch they agreed parking was a problem on the street, but it was often the closest spot they could find because they had to pick up other children at other local schools at around the same time.

The school previously recommended parents use several streets around the school, including Cottage Place, because they took on more students when the district reorganized and Brookside became a K-5 school a few years ago, according to Principal Matthew Wilson.

Wilson said he had been in contact with Westwood Police about the issue and removed Cottage from the list, but parents were still using the street. This year's current arrival and dismissal procedures do not include Cottage Place, but do include Clairmont and Westend Avenues.

"Because there is no signage, parents are still using it," Wilson said.

While the Cottage Place residents agree there is a problem, they do not all agree on what is the best possible solution. Some suggestions include putting up "no parking" signs for the times around school opening and letting out, or limiting parking to just one side of the street.

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