East Boston residents say they are getting hammered with parking tickets even as construction crews tear up their streets, with multiple roads closed at once and enforcement continuing on blocks where drivers had nowhere else to park. Everett Street, Gove Street, Bremen Street, Sumner Street and Maverick Square have all seen construction-related closures in the neighborhood, while corners and intersections on Lubec, Cottage and Webster streets have also been shut down.
The frustration was detailed in a report from CBS Boston, in which multimedia journalist Mike Sullivan documented residents' complaints. One homeowner, Anthony White, said construction workers on his property received three parking tickets despite having active work permits. Nick Moulaison, another resident, said some people were still ticketed and towed even as the closures piled up around them, and he told the station he had contacted his city councilor, the city, and 311 about the construction disruptions.
Sullivan's report also found a visitor parking sign in the neighborhood mislabeled as Dorchester instead of East Boston, even though it still allowed two-hour parking during the day. Boston Transportation Department vehicles were seen circling East Boston neighborhoods while parking enforcement was underway, with ticketing beginning at 9:15 a.m. on the day CBS Boston observed the scene. Street cleaning blocked parking on one half of the roads that remained open, and according to Moulaison, sweeping occurred on a day residents had been told it would not happen.
Closures Compound as Sewer and Repaving Work Overlaps
Moulaison said road paving was planned for Everett, Sumner and Webster streets over the following 10 days, according to CBS Boston's report. The timing lines up with a broader city effort: The Boston Sun reported that the Wu administration launched its 2026 construction season with a citywide goal of repaving 45 miles of roadway and building nearly 1,800 ADA-compliant curb ramps. Public Works also scheduled resurfacing on Sumner Street to begin on or after August 12, part of the city's phased neighborhood repaving operations, the outlet noted.
Layered on top of that repaving push is East Boston's Phase 4 sewer separation project, a multi-year effort led by the Boston Water and Sewer Commission to install new storm drains and update underground utilities. The overlapping projects mean residents are contending with road crews, sewer work and street sweeping crews often converging on the same blocks, leaving fewer open spots even as enforcement continues on the streets that remain accessible.
Councilor's Office Steps In, But Formal Appeals Still Run on a Clock
City Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata's office is pushing for the city to pause street cleaning during the active construction and has encouraged residents to contact the office directly to appeal parking tickets, according to the councilor's office as cited in CBS Boston's reporting. The office also said the city had paused tagging and towing during the ongoing work, though residents like Moulaison said some people were still ticketed and towed regardless. Coletta Zapata has represented District 1 — which includes East Boston, Charlestown and the North End — since May 2022, after previously serving as the district's chief of staff.
Any relief from the councilor's office exists alongside the city's formal, strict process. Drivers issued citations have 21 calendar days from the date of issuance to either pay the fine or file an appeal online, by mail, or in person at the Office of the Parking Clerk in City Hall, per Boston.gov. Overdue tickets accrue late fees and can eventually lead to vehicle registration non-renewal. Daytime street sweeping violations carry a $40 fine, while vehicles towed by city-contracted companies face a $132 base towing fee plus $35 per day in storage costs, according to SpotAngels.
Notification Gaps and a Requested Fix
The city sent a closure-related letter to neighbors seven days before closures began, but that notice did not prevent the kind of mixed messaging Moulaison described, where sweeping happened on a day residents were told it would not. Residents have asked the city to reduce parking-ticket enforcement given the scale of the disruption, and a construction liaison has been requested to coordinate permits and prevent simultaneous road blockages across the same stretch of neighborhood. Businesses have also felt the squeeze — the Quiet Few Tavern closed its outdoor dining because of construction on the road outside.
City Hall had not responded to CBS Boston's request for comment as of the station's report. The frustration echoes a separate fight over street space in East Boston: Hoodline previously reported that a developer sought to scrap planned bike lanes on Bennington Street to preserve on-street parking, underscoring how tightly contested every parking spot in the neighborhood has become.
How Other Cities Have Handled the Same Squeeze
Boston is not alone in wrestling with how hard to enforce street sweeping rules. Neighboring Cambridge eliminated routine towing for street sweeping in 2023, but violations doubled afterward, prompting officials to raise ticket fines to $100 in 2024 and explore penalties as high as $250, according to reporting cited by The Boston Globe. Boston City Council members have separately debated ways to ease parking ticket penalties for lower-income residents, including interest-free payment plans and community service alternatives, according to WCVB, with councilors citing the compounded economic distress that towing and ticketing cause vulnerable drivers.
Residents who encounter uncoordinated street closures, missing signage, or what they believe is illegal ticketing can report the issue through the city's 311 system online, by phone, or via the BOS:311 mobile app, which routes reports directly to the Boston Transportation Department and Public Works. For now, East Boston drivers are left navigating a shifting map of closures, sweeping schedules and enforcement that residents say has outpaced the city's ability to keep everyone informed.
