More Cities Join SF In Effort To Ban MonkeyParking App That Auctions Off Spaces To Highest Bidder
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS) -- More woes for San Francisco-based MonkeyParking; this time in Southern California.
Now, Los Angeles has joined the ranks of cities that want to prevent apps like MonkeyParking and Haystack from auctioning off public parking spaces. The City Council voted unanimously to begin drafting a measure similar to others in San Francisco, Beverly Hills and Boston.
MonkeyParking allows drivers to make money when they leave a spot by selling it to another driver. The app's creators insist it will cut down on gridlock and pollution. Opponents believe it will create parking squatters who will leave a spot, only if a bid comes in. Others fear it will create outrageously high bids for public parking that should be free and available on a first come, first served basis.
In late June, City Attorney Dennis Herrera issued the cease-and-desist letter to the Rome-based startup. Herrera also sent a request to the legal department of Apple Inc. to immediately remove the mobile application from its App Store because he said it violates Apple's own guidelines on legal requirements for apps.
MonkeyParking CEO Paolo Dobrowolny had previously refused to halt operations in San Francisco despite the order from Herrera's office. "I have the right to tell people if I am about to leave a parking spot, and they have the right to pay me for such information," he had said in a statement.