As you can imagine, we find ourselves at 21st & South on a fairly regular basis. And while we certainly espouse the car-free lifestyle, we confess that we sometimes find ourselves behind the wheel of a small automobile, looking for a place to park. One result of the water main break at 21st & Bainbridge back in July has been the closure of 21st St., between South and Kater, unless you are inclined to move the extremely movable barriers to either drive to your block or park your car. As you can see, the parking spots are very much in use on this block.

Barriers plus cars

Unfortunately, some neighbors have taken it upon themselves to aggressively defend this half-block, believing that the street should be closed except for near residential neighbors. Just the other day, one of these individuals hilariously confronted us after we pulled out of a parking spot and attempted to drive to 20th Street via Kater.

Yelling

Blocking the road

Noticed we were taking pictures

Ineffectively hiding

Same guy protects South Street, too!

Nearly got into a fistfight with this couple

So what do people think? Should the ten or so spots on 21st Street, between South and Kater be preserved for people who live nearby while the water main pit persists? Or are street parking spaces there for anybody who wants ’em?

Either way, we’re looking forward to the day in the (hopefully) near future when the pit is filled and 21st Street reopened. Though considering the moat on Bainbridge Street and the still-jacked up sidewalk just north of the intersection, we’re guessing it’s still gonna be a month at least.