The Parking Commission at its most recent meeting voted unanimously to uphold a $150 ticket issued to a New Canaan man for parking in a handicapped zone on Elm Street.
Though Charles Woodman did not attend the Commission’s special meeting Sept. 11 at Town Hall, but his appeal was briefly discussed as the group voted to uphold or void tickets that were appealed.
According to Parking Manager Stacy Miltenberg, a police officer issued the ticket to Woodman at 10:14 a.m. on July 11 after watching him park in a handicapped zone in front of Dunkin’ Donuts.
“[The officer] specifically told him he couldn’t park there,” Miltenberg said. “And not that the young man was disrespectful, but he kind of went back and forth with the officer, and the officer has had previous run-ins with him as far as parking and things like that and he parked right in front of the handicapped sign.”
Miltenberg then detailed her own discussion with Woodman after the ticket was issued, when he paid a visit to her office.
“I explained to him that you can’t, for any reason, park in a handicapped parking spot and he said to me that ‘My friend told me that police officers are not allowed to give me parking tickets,’ ” she recalled. “And my first words [to him] were ‘Do not ever listen to your friend again about anything.’ ”
Commission Chairman Keith Richey announced that the meeting that he would recuse himself from voting on Woodman’s appeal because he knows him personally, however, he did ask, “What kind of an appeal is that anyhow?”
Commissioners Peter Ogilvie, Pam Crum, Stuart Stringfellow and Chris Hering all voted to uphold Woodman’s ticket.