A parking ticket on a windshield is an unwelcome sight, but imagine a car with a hook under its front bumper, wheels in the air and no one driving it.
Although the chances of an illegally parked car being towed in State College are low, towing is sometimes necessary, said State College Borough officials, towing service owners and rental agents.
"The only times the borough tows is when a car is abandoned or it is a safety hazard," said John Henninger, traffic specialist of State College Bureau of Police Services. Henninger added that vehicles blocking traffic or in a fire lane will be towed immediately.
Ed Holmes, borough parking manager, said vehicles illegally displaying a "For Sale" sign also will be towed.
Apartment complexes and businesses have limited parking and most will tow if necessary, said Sam Gray, owner of Gray's Vehicle Clinic, RD 5, Bellefonte. Gray said students whose cars are towed blame landlords or towing companies, but it is the students' fault.
"If you need a high school education to get into Penn State, you should be able to read a sign that says 'No Parking'," Gray said.
Steve Wright (senior-accounting) believes towing is just another way State College tries to get money from students.
Many students who live in apartments park illegally to avoid the high cost of a parking space, said Dottie Colton, vice president of Associated Reality Property Management, 456 E. Beaver Ave.
Colton said the average rental fee of an Associated Reality parking space is $35 to $40 per month. Tenants have the right to ask that a car be towed if another vehicle is parked in their space, she said.
"Towing is the last thing we want to do, but we will do it if necessary," Colton said.
Charlene Friedman of Kissinger, Leonard and Brower Realtors, 245 S. Allen St., said the realtors also tow only when necessary.
Councilwoman Jean McManis said the lack of downtown parking forces people to park illegally. She said she believes some people ignore the risk of being towed because they have no other option.
Amy Sorokin (junior-finance), who does not live downtown, said she usually cannot find a parking space when she drives across College Avenue. She said her car has never been towed, but she has received several parking tickets.
Local towing company owners said towing illegally parked cars has not become a big business in State College.
John Tennis, owner of John Tennis Towing, 1101 N. Atherton St., believes this is due to towing regulations in the State College Borough Code of Ordinances.
The cost of a tow is set at $35 by the code, Tennis said, adding the cost is $40 if dollies, a device used to raise the vehicle, are used.
The code specifies that the vehicle be taken to the towing company's lot, where it will remain until the owner claims it. The vehicle is subject to a storage charge if it is not claimed within 24 hours, Tennis said.
About 75 percent of Tennis's business involves towing broken-down vehicles, he said. The remaining 25 percent of the cars he picks up are illegally parked cars owned by University students, he said.
Skip Stewart, owner of Stewart Towing, Summit Road, said he mostly tows broken-down vehicles. Stewart said he thinks visitors to State College may be unaware of the parking regulations.
"A lot of the (illegally parked) cars being towed belong to visitors and should be ticketed instead," Stewart said.
McManis believes people avoid State College because of the parking situation.
"A lot of people avoid coming into State College because they think they can't get around town. These people would add to our prosperity (by spending money) and their absence is hurting us," McManis said.
