Eagles tailgaters react to changes made by parking lot officials. The new guidelines didn’t dampen the spirit.
Some fans wondered why these new tailgating guidelines were implemented and expressed there was “a little disarray,” while others said “I don’t mind this at all.”
The tailgaters in Lot D showed up early on Sunday morning prepared to weather a storm. Fortunately for them, the on and off rain and wind were the only real storm they had to deal with.
New tailgating guidelines went into effect for the first time on Sunday, impacting oversized vehicles, which are now assigned to specific lots, including Lot D (inside the Xfinity Mobile Arena parking lots), the upper section of Lot N (facing 7th & Pattison Avenues), and Lot P (inside the Citizens Bank Park parking lots), which was added to the initial list of lots by the Eagles and Comcast Spectacor after pushback from tailgaters.
Carmen “Big Carm” Conti, the president of the Eagles Tailgate Association, had his car lined up at 10 p.m. Saturday night, not knowing what to expect. Other cars started arriving around 3 a.m., which Conti said is “unusual” for the regulars.
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Once the gates opened, a few minutes later than the 6 a.m. scheduled time, Conti, a Washington Township native, said things went smoother than expected.
“A little disarray, but it’s their first time doing it, so I got to give them credit,” Conti said. “With all the vehicles, they handled it mostly well.”
The combined smell of breakfast sandwiches and beer didn’t change, but some of the spots where regular tailgaters could be found did, due to assigned parking locations implemented under the new rules.
Stephen Dochnal left his house in Palmyra, N.J., around 6 a.m. to get in line. He’s been tailgating since 1986. He and his group of usual tailgaters communicated to get in line close to one another so their tailgates could stay together.
“They shook the snow globe, but all the snowflakes still kind of landed together,” Dochnal said.
Still, he questioned why these changes needed to be made.
An email from the Sports Complex Parking Venture said the changes are to provide a smoother parking experience for guests that will “ease traffic flow, keep lanes clear, and preserve parking availability for all guests.”
Dochnal, however, believes it’s a “money grab” at $50 per spot and $200 for oversized vehicles.
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“Let everybody come in and do what they do,” Dochnal said. “All the late arrivals give them a separate parking spot. Give them a certain space, so when you show up here at 10:30 or 11, you can pull right in, park your car, go to the stadium, come back out, get your car, and leave. ... These are some of the questions that are still in the air. It’s still early.”
Conti plans to work with the Eagles and Comcast Spectacor to ensure his fellow fans’ feedback is heard.
It was this pushback that led to the addition of Lot P for oversized vehicles and also updated the guidelines regarding drop-offs by companion cars.
Originally, drop-off cars carrying additional people and supplies were not going to be allowed. But that prohibition was lifted and such vehicles can park in the oversized lot for up to one hour before moving to a different area.
Still, some tailgate groups were broken up based on the size of the vehicles, including Conti’s.
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“Some of my guys don’t have large vehicles, so they got stuck over in the F lot, which kind of hurts us because that was our chef, and so we got to figure out another way to get him in over here,” he added.
A season ticket holder since the 1960s, Bonnie Mosson, who now lives in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., said she hopes to see the policy extended to the cars in other lots, such as Lot F.
“A lot of the problems we were seeing was one car, 10 spots, and people coming without tickets, taking up a lot, taking a lot of revenue away from the parking lot holders,” Mosson said. “I don’t mind this at all. I’m fine with it. I just hope it applies to cars as well.”
As for the RV owners and other fans with oversized vehicles, Mosson said there was a camaraderie that existed on Sunday as they helped each other navigate a new situation and get established in a new spot.
This courtesy, as Mosson called it, is indicative of who Eagles fans and tailgaters truly are.
“We’re a lot nicer, smarter, kinder, pleasant than anyone gives us credit for,“ Mosson said. ”Yeah, there’s some bad apples, but there’s bad apples in everything. I’ve been a season ticket holder since 1960, and anyone who says Eagles fans are rude, corrupt, nasty, we’re not.”
No matter where they end up, the parking lot party isn’t stopping, and Conti said they’re still going to “have fun.”
“We’re still a family,” Conti said.
