Residents say illegal driveways plague Brooklyn

NEW YORK (FOX5NY.COM) - We had to drive around Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, for well over a half an hour in search of a parking spot Friday night. But this is the exact nuisance neighbors experience here on a daily basis, thanks to residents who pave illegal driveways on their front lawns.

This is a rampant problem on 79th Street between 19th and 20th Avenues. This stretch of the street alone has more than a dozen bogus driveways, residents say. Many of those have popped up over the last 6 months.

Some are properly permitted, but the majority of these "pave and parks" are illegal. Most are blatantly obvious with full curbs still in front of them.

For many residents, this situation has turned ugly. One man told us he filed a lawsuit because of property damage after parking in front of someone's fake driveway.

If you park in front of one of those illegal cuts, you will still be ticketed if the homeowner calls the police. That is because officers cannot determine which driveways are legitimate and they have no records of it, according to the NYPD.

The Department of Buildings said that inspections for illegal curb cuts are complaint-based and officials encourage the public to call 311. But neighbors we spoke to say they have filed complaints nearly every day and still, nothing has been done.