GREENSBORO, N.C. — Tens of thousands of people made their way to North Carolina A&T State University’s campus last week for homecoming festivities and the football game.
However, for some attendees, the weekend took an unexpected turn when their cars were towed, leaving them with hefty bills.
WFMY spoke to a handful of people from all parts of the country, who came to Greensboro for the Greatest Homecoming on Earth (GHOE) celebrations.
Each said they paid someone $15 to park in a lot along Summit Avenue. The problem? Their cars were towed from the lot, and the cost to retrieve them ranged from $400 to $1,000.
What they thought was a safe, paid parking spot turned out to be anything but.
The drivers said this happened on Saturday. They parked at what used to be the Summit Executive Center, paid a parking attendant who assured them their cars were safe, and that it was a legitimate parking lot.
Ashley Burnett, a 2006 graduate, said she confronted the towing company at its lot in High Point. She paid $460 to get her car back and tried to negotiate, but they wouldn’t budge.
“You're taking food off of somebody's plate,” Burnett said. “You don't know if that was supposed to be their mortgage payment, their rent payment. You don't know if they have a kid that's sick. You don't know if they take care of their elderly parents. You don't know. And they don't care, they don't care."
The signage at the lot where these drivers parked listed C.A.T Towing and Recovery as the towing enforcement company.
When WFMY called the business, a person answering the phone denied that they had unfairly towed anyone and said, "People get towed for GHOE and make up all kinds of lies."
They then asked WFMY to stop calling.
One driver, Jeanne Pope, whose car was towed from the Summit lot, said the experience has made her reconsider returning for future homecomings.
“My husband, who is an alum, graduated in 1990. He is like, I don't want to go back to GHOE next year. We have gone every year since I can remember,” Pope said. “We have generations of folks that we count on seeing and attending at this one huge family event, which has now been forever marred by this fully negative experience. It's awful."
According to signage at the location, the City of Greensboro owns the building. Back in June, the city council voted to purchase the property with plans to turn it into affordable housing.
The city said it was unaware of any cars towed from the lot over the weekend and that it did not request any vehicles to be towed.
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