‘Ignoring the Law for Months, If Not Years’: Parking Authority Seeks To Double Fine for Scofflaws Requiring Boot Removal

The volunteer group that oversees the New Canaan Parking Bureau is proposing dollar increases to a handful of fines for violations, including doubling the fee for removing the boot off of scofflaws’ cars to $100.

SUV parks in a Main Street crosswalk on Friday, July 8, 2016. MW photo

A boot is affixed to a motor vehicle if it has five or more unpaid parking tickets, members of the Parking Commission said Thursday at their regular meeting.

Though violators already are facing numerous fines, and at higher-than-usual rates because they’re assessed late fees, scofflaws shouldn’t be left to face only $50 because “these are chronic offenders who finally—at long, long last—have been caught,” according to parking commissioner Peter Ogilvie.

“You are a chronic scofflaw,” he said at the meeting, held at Town Hall. “You have been ignoring the law for months, if not years.”

This guy double-parked in the crosswalk at Elm and South Avenue for several minutes while a woman who had emerged from the passenger seat ran into a store, on Friday, July 8, 2016. MW photo

The proposed increase passed 4-1, with commissioner Rick Franco voting against it.

Commissioners voted unanimously to increase eight $20 violations to $25 each—see details in the table below—and to introduce a new, $40 fine for the third violation of an unpaid parking space.

Currently, parking enforcement officers assess a $20 (soon to be $25) fine for the first violation, $40 for second violation and then $30 fine for the third violation. That third violation long has been at $30 because it falls into a general category of ‘Other’ under the current parking fine structure.

The commission last raised some parking fines two years ago. Prior to that, it had been 10 years since New Canaan increased its parking fines.

Franco urged the commission to “pick and choose” carefully which fines it was seeking to increase.

“Look at ones that truly create issues where someone could get hurt or create a flow of traffic issue, which would be more than 12 inches from the curb,” he said. “I am seeing that a lot lately on Elm. The vehicles are not pulling up tightly to the curb. I don’t mind if they are six or eight inches away, but people are stopping three feet away. And they are not doing the parallel spot correctly, then that car is also influencing the flow of traffic.”

After some discussion, the commissioners also increased the most serious (money-wise) violation—$100 for parking in a handicapped space—with Franco noting that in the 30 years he’s served on the panel, not one ticket for that violation has been voided.

“ ‘I will never, ever vote to void this ticket,’ ” Franco recalled saying three decades ago on coming onto the commission. “If you want to make it $150, go ahead. But the thing is, we will never void it.”

The commission voted 5-0 in favor of the measure.

Here’s a look at the new slate of parking fines, as proposed (they are to be reviewed by the Board of Selectmen):