AUBURN — When the most recent snowfall waned early last Wednesday morning, Pam Hecker returned her mother’s car to its parking space at the Auburn Esplanade, a senior housing development. She assumed all was well.

But later in the day, Hecker found herself retrieving the vehicle from a local towing service — at a cost of $185. 

“I was pretty loud and vocally upset,” she said Thursday, describing her interaction with the towing service. “It’s an ongoing issue there.” 

As winter wears on, the headaches associated with parking — and towing — during and after snowstorms may be getting to local residents in the Twin Cities. The issue is irking more than just residents. 

“It’s a big headache for everyone,” says Richard Whiting, executive director of the Auburn Housing Authority, which operates the Auburn Esplanade and a number of other properties. 

Whiting, along with police officials from both cities, said Thursday that calling in a wrecker to tow for plowing is a “last resort.”

The housing authority, however, contracts with a private towing service, while each municipality has its own policies and towing vendor lists.   

There’s no easy solution — for anyone. 

At the Auburn Esplanade, Hecker said, residents will clean off their neighbor’s car, move it for plowing and put it back after the plowing is done for $15. 

To save her mother the extra cash during storms, Hecker said, she takes the car home. Her mother, who is 90 and still driving, has been living there for about 15 years. After Tuesday’s storm, Hecker said she brought the car back early the next morning because of the limited snowfall, and kept the keys because her mother was still sleeping. 

When the Auburn Housing Authority contacted Hecker’s mother about moving the car because plows had to clean off the parking lot, she didn’t have the keys. It was towed shortly after that. 

Hecker said her mother’s car was the only one left in the lot, and was surprised the plow couldn’t “go around her car for only an inch of snow.” 

The Auburn Housing Authority has a contract with an Auburn towing service called Parking Lot Patrol.

A spokesperson for Parking Lot Patrol said the company is a smaller, private service and does not work with municipalities. The towing rates, they said, are comparable to other private local services. 

“It’s the nature of the business,” the spokesperson said of their activities this time of year. “We don’t make friends.” 

Parking Lot Patrol charges a base rate of $150 for towing, with a $35 mandatory “release fee” charged to the owner when picking up the vehicle. Other fees can apply based on the situation. If a vehicle’s owner comes to retrieve it while being hooked up to the wrecker, a $75 “drop fee” is normally charged.

Whiting said the Auburn Housing Authority changes towing companies periodically but sees the same problem: They’re all expensive.

He said the organization could consider getting its own tow truck, but may be criticized for competing with the private sector.

Hecker said that if she hadn’t checked in with her mother Wednesday, she would be paying an additional $45 per night.  

Only one customer complaint about Parking Lot Patrol has been filed with the Better Business Bureau in the past three years. 

Whiting said he knows the cost of towing, and that people get upset. In the past, he’s been criminally threatened over a towing issue. He said the individual property managers make the decisions on towing but try to track people down beforehand. 

“It’s not a great scenario,” he said, adding that the organization is liable for residents who may sustain injuries from slipping on ice or snow. He said this means they have to be vigilant about clearing parking lots and sidewalks. 

“Even in the lightest of storms, there’s usually some attention,” he said. 

He said the housing authority does its best to warn residents of impending plowing. 

Jim Dowling, director of the Lewiston Housing Authority, said plowing is “a huge deal in rental housing,” with the ultimate goal to clear as much as possible to prevent slips and falls. 

He said plowing with vehicles still parked in the lot can lead to patches of snow and ice that melt and freeze. Residents are notified during plowing, but as in Auburn, if they can’t be reached, they’ll be towed.

The Lewiston Housing Authority also contracts with a private towing service. While Dowling said he didn’t know the standard rates offhand, he called it “a significant expense. 

“It’s not something we take lightly,” he said.

For each city’s police department, the parking and towing issue is also ongoing, but streamlined. The protocol for citywide parking bans is regularly publicized, and each municipality has its own public lot for parking during snow bans.   

According to Auburn Police Lt. Anthony Harrington, police are often called to a car by the Public Works Department. Within reason, he said, police will turn their flashing blue lights on and attempt to contact the owner. A parking ticket is issued and, if needed, a wrecker called. 

Both Lewiston and Auburn have a rotating number of wreckers, which must have a facility in that city. 

Adam Higgins, the interim deputy police chief in Lewiston, said the city stipulates that the wreckers in service cannot charge more than a total of $150 for towing. 

“We don’t want a situation where they’re charging large amounts of money,” he said. “We make every effort we can to locate the owner before calling the wrecker.”

He said contacting a vehicle owner is quicker — and more fair. 

Hecker was admittedly frustrated by the situation — even taking to social media to vent — and received a number of comments from residents who have had similar experiences. 

She said a friend recently told her that her husband’s vehicle had been towed from Barker Mill Arms while he was hospitalized, and because of the hospitalization the car was there so long it racked up more than $2,000 in fees. 

She said she recognized the incident with her mother’s car was her mistake, and she paid for the towing fees. She said she may soon be looking into the Mechanics Row parking garage in Auburn. 

“There are options,” she said. “But basically, if you have a car, it’s a hassle.”

For more information regarding parking bans in Auburn, visit www.auburnmaine.gov/Pages/Government/Police-Winter-Parking-Bans.

For more information regarding parking bans in Lewiston, visit www.ci.lewiston.me.us/index.aspx?nid=541.

In Lewiston, if a resident’s vehicle is towed, the owner can call 207-784-6421 to find out which towing company has removed the vehicle and where it has been placed.