Pelham residents say they are being fined $100 for parking in their own driveways.
During a recent council meeting, three residents who live on Walker Road in the Stonehaven community, told the council that they had all received citations because their vehicles extend across their driveways and into the sidewalk. The city of Pelham said a local ordinance and state law prohibits vehicles from parking on the sidewalk.
However, some of the Walker Road homes were built before the city ordinance was adopted.
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“We’re kind of all baffled about this ordinance because we’ve been living there 16 to 23 years and never had this situation before,” Michelle Estes, a Pelham resident who received a citation, told the council.
Multiple homes in the Stonehaven community are dealing with this issue.
Up and down the streets, cars are carefully pulled all the way up to the home, only an inch or two away from their small porches, yet, their vehicles extend over the sidewalks.
Some people are pulling their vehicles into their driveways horizontally. Others are spilling over into their lawns as they try to fit multiple cars into their driveways.
Large trucks and vans have even fewer options.
The citations
Resident Brad Manly says the parking space where he received a citation was 230 inches, and 36 inches of that includes the sidewalk. His own driveway is 237, not including the 36 inch sidewalk.
His truck, however, is 243 inches long.
“It’s never going to fit,” Manly told the council “There’s no way that my vehicle would fit in the parking space. I’ve got several other neighbors who have also received a citation. Their vehicles won’t fit either. We’re just asking that you review this.”
Estes said she has a short vehicle that is still too long for her driveway.
“This is a $100 ticket for me to use my own driveway,” Estes said. “That’s my grocery budget.”
She said she has had to pull into her grass, almost up to her porch, just to make sure her vehicle does not cross over onto the sidewalk.
Estes said the adjustments she and her neighbors have to make in order to not receive citations is beginning to make the neighborhood look “sloppy.”
She added that she wished the city had sent a letter to warn residents that the ordinance would be enforced before handing out citations.
Greg Watts, a longtime Pelham resident, said he and his family have lived in their Walker Road home since 2001 and have had no issue with parking citations until now.
He said his house was built before the parking ordinance went into effect.
“Something needs to be adjusted,” he told the council.
Watts has received three tickets totaling $300.
“I’m not paying that because I’m parked in my driveway that I’ve parked in the same place for 25 years.”
The city’s response
The council members thanked the residents for speaking up about the issue and agreed to look into it further.
“We are listening,” Council Member Michell Powers said. “I guess the ordinance has been that way for a while, but we will look and see what changed from the time the ordinance happened to now that you’re getting the tickets.”
“That concern is a legitimate one, so we appreciate you taking the time to come out here,” Council Member Christine Townes said. “Rest assured we are looking at it.”
“This is definitely on our radar, I can assure you that, and we will be having discussions about it,” Council Member Markus Hal Snowden said.
The city’s formal statement on the matter, however, is less receptive to the residents’ requests for adjustments.
“Parking on sidewalks or any portion of a sidewalk is nearly universally prohibited across the United States,” the statement reads.
The city cites Pelham’s parking ordinance number 524, state law and the federal Americans with Disabilities Act as reasons the residents can not park on the sidewalk.
The city ordinance, which was adopted in May 2025, specifically states that vehicles cannot be parked “on a sidewalk (including the portion of any sidewalk which continues through a public or private driveway).”
The city’s statement reads:
“Sidewalks, as shown in this case, are often part of the public right-of-way and are maintained as public property. This applies even if the sidewalk crosses over a private driveway apron. Sidewalks are built for pedestrian safety rather than vehicle storage.”
“Laws like this help ensure that runners and walkers stay out of traffic, and that people who use wheelchairs, walkers, canes, or other mobility devices can safely navigate sidewalks without encountering barriers.”
“Pelham enforces state law and the provisions of its parking ordinance citywide as issues are identified or complaints are received. The City does not have the authority to grant a variance to waive provisions of state or federal law.”
Some of the houses on Walker Road in the Stonehaven community were built primarily between 1999 and 2000, according to realty websites, meaning their homes were built before the ordinance went into effect.
“I just don’t understand why we have to pay a citation for parking in our own driveways,” Estes told the council. “If anybody should be responsible, it should be the contractor and the builders of the neighborhood.”
The next Pelham City Council Meeting is set for Monday, Oct. 5.