Is the junk in your garage creating parking problems?

Too many Surrey garages are full of mountains of junk, creating parking problems on city streets, so the city is launching a contest to spur some badly-needed spring cleaning.

The rules for the Give Your Car a Home Contest are simple, according to Dave Harkness, the city's manager of parking services.

Simply take pictures of your garage before and after you've cleaned it, then send your photos to the city by May 20.

"That's the spot you use for storage, but if you can have something to motivate you like this, maybe it does get some space freed up on the street."

The grand prize is a $2,000 shopping spree at Home Depot, but not everyone is a fan of the idea.

Parking has been a heated issue in East Clayton Heights for years. Residents say it can be impossible to find a spot sometimes, mainly because many properties have illegal basement suites.

Resident Mauro Hrelia questions why the city has money for a contest, but not for inspectors to crack down on the illegal secondary suites.

"They tell us they have no money to get people to check on these illegal basement suites, but they have money to put out little brochures on 'Hey, clean out your garage.' Come on guys, what a joke," says Hrelia.

The city is also looking at residential parking permits, letting residents use school lots during non-school hours and widening streets to accommodate more cars.