Okay, I need to talk this out because I feel like I'm losing my mind! I got hit with a blocking-a-driveway ticket on Seeley Street near 10th, right by the park. The spot is in front of what looks like a very old carriage house or garage. The curb is maybe painted? But here's the thing: I pulled the DOB curb cut map and the address doesn't come up at all! The physical driveway apron is there, but there's no active curb cut permit or record that I can find. I also checked the DCP zoning map and the old tax photo. The block only has alternate side signs, no posted driveway sign. There's no metal plate on the garage either.

I'm trying to figure out whether to fight this online with a DOB map that says 'no curb cut' or if the judge will just say a driveway apron obviously exists and not care. Has anyone tried pulling the certificate of occupancy for one of these old buildings? Because if the building department doesn't treat painted curb as gospel, I want to be ready. I don't know whether to report the missing curb cut to 311 first or just file the dispute. It feels insane that you can get a ticket for blocking a driveway that maybe isn't legal to be a driveway! What evidence have you all actually submitted and won with?

Been through this, and it's real annoying when there's just a painted apron and no sign. First move: log into the NYC parking ticket site and look at the photos the ticket writer took. If the officer's own photo shows no posted sign, that's a good start. But the city will sometimes fall back on 'driveway existed.'

What worked for me was pulling the DOF active driveway list and saving it. If the address doesn't have a legal curb cut on file, mention that in the online hearing. Keep it short: no posted sign, no legal curb cut on record, and the officer's photo shows no sign. Have you tried filing a 311 report for a missing driveway sign? Sometimes just having the service request number in your evidence makes you look like the one who actually did the homework.

Wait, so in NYC a driveway doesn't count as a driveway unless there's a permit on file? That's wild. I moved from Ohio not long ago and I see people parked across curb cuts all the time, but then you can get a ticket for one with no sign? I would have assumed any cut in the curb automatically means no parking.

Do you have a photo showing the whole car and the curb? When I had tickets before, it was mostly just pay or not, so this hearing thing is new to me. Is this one you can do by app, or do you have to go somewhere?

YES, fight this! The city is way too sloppy about old curb cuts that were never legalized. Send in everything clear, not a novel. I'd include:

• the DOB Building Information System record showing no curb cut for the address
• the officer's photo from the ticket
• a screenshot from Google Street View or ZOLA showing the missing sign
• the ZOLA transportation layer! Have you tried toggling the curb cut driveway layer under transportation? It's incredible how many old cuts don't show up.

Also check the old certificate of occupancy. If the garage isn't listed as legal parking, the apron might be a leftover from a stable entrance, which a judge will often toss. And see if the property has an active DOT driveway permit. If the owner cut the curb without a permit, that's not your problem! File online, do not pay first.

That DOB mismatch is more common than people think! Also, before I forget: if you're trying to watch the Liberty road game with game audio on Sunday, Sunday Liberty road game — any Harlem or Washington Heights bar with League Pass audio? has some Harlem and Washington Heights bar recommendations.

Back to the curb cut: the thing that worked for me was submitting a printout from the city's own old tax photo collection, plus a short evidence list on the first page. The judge won't research the address for you. Write it out: no sign posted, no active curb cut on file, and the vehicle was not blocking a legal driveway. Also look closely at whether your car was actually in front of the flare or beyond the driveway edge. If your tires were past the flared wing, that can be considered not blocking. But mostly just make the documents super simple to read.

Okay @RockawayRider, this is exactly what I needed! I didn't know about the ZOLA curb cut layer and I've been clicking around on the DOB map like a fool. I just pulled ZOLA for the lot and the transportation layer shows no sidewalk vehicle crossing for that address. I also found an old tax photo where the same spot is just a dirt apron! That might be the smoking gun.

@Flatbush_Fi, I honestly forgot that the online dispute system shows you the officer's photos before you file. That could change things because I still don't think there was any sign on the curb. @MovedFromOhio you're not crazy: the city usually treats a driveway as something with curb cut plus permit plus sign, but the ticketing side doesn't always verify. I'll file this week and update. Has anyone had them try to enforce on a curb cut that was later removed or fenced? Because this one looks old enough that the garage may not even be legal as a garage!

Good move checking the officer's photo. I had one on Argyle where the officer's own frame showed my bumper was a foot behind the curb line, and they still wanted me to pay. I wrote: 'The vehicle is not in front of a legal curb cut; the curb cut has no current DOB permit; there is no posted sign; see attached photo.' Dismissed.

Don't upload a novel. Give them the three or four documents and one sentence each. If the city denies, appeal with the same stuff plus a ZOLA screenshot. The appeal is online too. Also look up whether the garage is even accessible. If there's a fence or trash enclosure in front, add that. Nobody from the city is going out there to check, so you have to hand it to them.

I just spent way too long clicking around ZOLA near my own block in Flatbush, and now I'm pretty sure half the driveways are illegal, including the one my landlord says I can't park in front of. Wait, can a landlord even make that call if the curb cut isn't legal? Maybe that's another thread.

Thanks for the tip about checking the officer's photos. I had no idea the dispute site shows that. ProspectParkPicnic, did the old tax photo end up helping? I'm curious because I might try the same thing for a hydrant ticket where the sign was missing, or maybe that's a different category. Keep us posted!