Afternoon Parking near Alewife? (Arlington: living in, legal, garage)

[DavidMI]

I will have to pick up my car near Alewife Station mid-day sometime within a few weeks. I realize there is parking at Alewife Station, but assuming that lot is full when I get my car (since it might be midday) where else might I park in the area without getting towed? I'm OK with paying a reasonable rate to park (i.e. under maybe $15).

[Parsec]

There are no other pay garages nearby. There are multiple private lots nearby, but I would not risk getting towed. There's also the Lanes n Games parking lot off Rt-2 East, but I wouldn't try it either unless you speak w/a manager ahead of time.

Why does it matter if the lot is full when you get your car if your car is already parked? The question is, when will you be parking your car (not retrieving it)?

[scratchie]

I'm not sure what you're trying to do. As Parsec asked, what difference does it make if the lot is full when you pick up your car? How are you planning to get to Alewife? Do you have another car that you need to park so you can pick up the first one? If not, I can't see how it would make any difference.

In any case, from my years living in Arlington, I seem to recall that some people would start to leave the parking garage by lunchtime, presumably because they had finished their business in the city.

[DavidMI]

As Parsec asked, what difference does it make if the lot is full when you pick up your car?

Because I can't park my car on top of other cars.

How are you planning to get to Alewife? Do you have another car that you need to park so you can pick up the first one? If not, I can't see how it would make any difference.

How does any of this matter? All I'm asking is if there is parking around Alewife that is not at the station? If the lot at Alewife Station is full, I can't park it there and will need to find an alternative. Not really that difficult to understand.

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by DavidMI

How does any of this matter? All I'm asking is if there is parking around Alewife that is not at the station? If the lot at Alewife Station is full, I can't park it there and will need to find an alternative. Not really that difficult to understand.

It's difficult to understand because you didn't say you were trying to drop off your car at Alewife. You said you were picking it up, so that implies your car was already parked there, so of course it wouldn't matter if the lot was at capacity since you're already parked.

To answer your revised question, if there is parking around Alewife that is not at the station?: No, there is no legal longer term parking there. You could risk parking at the Fresh Pond mall.

[DavidMI]

Originally Posted by timberline742

It's difficult to understand because you didn't say you were trying to drop off your car at Alewife. You said you were picking it up, so that implies your car was already parked there, so of course it wouldn't matter if the lot was at capacity since you're already parked.

To answer your revised question, if there is parking around Alewife that is not at the station?: No, there is no legal longer term parking there. You could risk parking at the Fresh Pond mall.

It's called "context clues."

Perhaps I should've just asked "is there any parking near Alewife midday that's not at the station?" Of course, if I had asked that, then I'd get a half-dozen responses saying "why can't you not park there earlier in the morning?" or "why can't you just take the subway?" or "I would just park at Alewife Station if I were you." Because pretty much every thread on CD seems to be about 10 people trying to find some flaw in your question, and maybe 1-2 people actually being helpful (if you're lucky).

Though, I am incredibly thankful for the 10% that normally respond with helpful replies.

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by DavidMI

It's called "context clues."

Perhaps I should've just asked "is there any parking near Alewife midday that's not at the station?" Of course, if I had asked that, then I'd get a half-dozen responses saying "why can't you not park there earlier in the morning?" or "why can't you just take the subway?" or "I would just park at Alewife Station if I were you." Because pretty much every thread on CD seems to be about 10 people trying to find some flaw in your question, and maybe 1-2 people actually being helpful (if you're lucky).

Though, I am incredibly thankful for the 10% that normally respond with helpful replies.

It's interesting that you have that strong an opinion and that much insight considering you just signed up. I find the site very helpful, and the alternatives that are presented are helpful at times as well, even if they don't answer the direct question, because they bring up other possibilities that may have not been considered.