Need to park a motorcycle for 2 weeks (continuously) this July in NYC.

June 5, 2013 2:25 PM

Hello. I acquired a '91 Honda Nighthawk CB250 last summer, and now I need to leave town (Manhattan) for 2 weeks in July. Help me figure out what to do.

I don't have any motorcyclist friends who can take my bike away to their garages or move my bike back and forth.

I may appeal to my doormen or advertise in my building (for pay of course), however I'm shy and I worry what would happen if someone fell through, so, I'm wondering:

1) Is there somewhere (perhaps your fine neighborhood?) I can park a motorcycle for 2 weeks in one of the 5 boroughs or Jersey and not have to move it (i.e., no Alternate Side Parking - though I'm also worried about random "DO NOT PARK" signs going up after I've left it and won't be back). I have also seen Primo Spot but I don't really want to drive to Queens to find out if it's right (though it is in my neighborhood).
2) I have heard of free parking for motorcycles at JFK airport. Can anyone confirm this is For Real? See here or here
3) I have a quote for $200 for the 2 weeks in a nearby garage. Should I just do that or would I be fine doing it a freebie way?
4) If I do pay someone to do it, what would a reasonable rate even be?
5) Anything else I haven't considered?

Let me be clear on a couple points: this is not an expensive bike, it's more of an old beater that gives me trouble, but I'm a beginner so it's alright for me. I'd rather it wasn't stolen, but if it is, well, I wouldn't be heartbroken. I'd prefer it didn't fall over, but again, not the end of the world if it does. My main concern is not accruing a bunch of parking tickets or having the thing impounded so I can enjoy my 2 weeks away and not stress.

Thanks MeFites!

posted by jacobdezoet to Travel & Transportation around New York, NY (6 answers total)

Storage unit? It's possible they ban you from storing motorcycles in a regular old storage unit at a place with $1 for the first month, but it's worth enquiring I suppose.
posted by hoyland at 4:04 PM on June 5, 2013

When I park at JFK or Newark I pay around $15 a day give or take a coupon here or there so $200 seems like a decent rate to me. Especially if you don't have to drive all the way out to JFK unnecessarily - ie you aren't taking the bike to get to the airport to go on vacation. One other option would be if you have any friends or co-workers who have a place in Jersey or Long Island etc who wouldn't mind parking your bike in their driveway for two weeks.
posted by rdnnyc at 5:45 PM on June 5, 2013

Don't worry about alternate side parking. I have a scooter that I park around the corner from my apartment in Park Slope. I forget to move it all the time, and have only gotten a ticket on a couple of occasions. Even if you do get a ticket, it's $65, which is cheaper than storage.
posted by lunalaguna at 5:53 PM on June 5, 2013

Response by poster: Hmm, interesting lunalaguna. Maybe I'll try parking it in Park Slope ;o) I've always been scared into moving my bike religiously for fear of a ticket but perhaps some experimentation is in order even in my own neighborhood.

hoyland, I've considered storage units for seriously long-term storage, but rates around here still tend to be high; I don't know if we get $1 first months. I'm also getting a headache thinking about doing the paperwork for that. Still, good ideas and good to know I'm in ballpark with 'formal' JFK LTP, rdnnyc.

I would be very interested to hear more suggestions, and hey, if anyone happens to be interested in somehow babysitting my bike for a fee, memail me (I'm on the UES).
posted by jacobdezoet at 8:04 PM on June 5, 2013

I used to park my motorcycle and leave it (covered and locked, I used a sign pole) on the median on E 14th St that separates the main street from the street that abuts Stuyvesant Town. I never got a ticket. The cover was always covered in dog pee and occasionally poop. Seemed safe enough to me.
posted by backwords at 11:09 AM on June 6, 2013

Response by poster: Well, I actually truly accidentally forgot to move my bike on Tuesday and it didn't get a ticket. I guess codes enforcement is really lax even when one lives right next to a fire station and a police station o_O

Currently the bike isn't starting (aaaagaaaain, problem bike which I spend more time trying to fix than riding >.<

Thanks again, everyone.
posted by jacobdezoet at 11:27 AM on June 13, 2013