Hollywood residents frustrated over school pickup parking problems

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. — Hollywood residents are fed up with parking problems they say are making it difficult to get through their neighborhood.

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One homeowner even put up a sign asking drivers not to block driveways.

Local 10 spent two days watching the situation on Van Buren Street near Hollywood Academy of Arts and Science, which has middle and elementary schools.

During staggered pickup times in the morning and afternoon, cars lined the narrow two-way street, with some drivers double parked and others blocking driveways.

Residents said they often have nowhere to go.

“There’s nothing I can do. Stuck,” one driver said.

The parking situation also raised concerns about emergency access.

“If a fire truck can’t get down here, what happens?” one resident asked. “A garbage truck, huge, make it through here every day, fine.”

Local 10 saw cars parked down the street and snaking around the corner. While the crew was interviewing one woman who was double parked, a car honked and a Local 10 photographer had to step out of the way.

She said the issue was a school problem.

There are no-parking signs outside the schools, but residents say the congestion continues.

Miguel Ramos, who lives on the street, said he has had enough and that people can be rude. He also said the parking situation often makes him late for work.

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“One person, well, they decided to live near a school. They should know they decided to do that,” Ramos said when asked about that argument.

Cars are forced to maneuver around each other on the two-way street, with parked cars and parents waiting for pickup leaving little room to pass.

One woman posted a sign asking drivers not to block her driveway, saying residents need to pick up their kids, too.

When asked whether the system seemed like a good one, one driver defended the setup.

“It seems perfect. Where else are we going to go?” she said. “Not in the middle of the road. Where else am I going to go?”

The school declined to comment.

Hollywood police said people should call when cars are blocking the road. Tickets will be issued, and drivers cannot block a two-lane road like this.

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