Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/305631
In all her travels around the country, she added, she could recall only one place that had "No Parking" signage indicating the amount of a citation: Miami Beach. Chairman Charles Hines could not be reached for comment because he was out of town, his assistant told the News Leader. Neither Commissioner Joe Barbetta nor Commissioner Carolyn Mason responded to the News Leader's messages seeking their views. THE BACKGROUND On Oct. 23, 2013, the commission approved restrictions calling for no parking on the street or the public right of way from the intersection of Avenida de Mayo and Canal Road to the intersection of Avenida de Mayo and Avenida de Cortez. Beyond that, no-park- ing zones are staggered in 500-foot sections from Avenida de Cortez to Avenida Del Norte. The goal is to ensure emergency vehicles have sufficient room to traverse the street, as stip- ulated by the National Fire Protection Code. County staff finally erected signs on the street in early February, but Deputy Chris McGregor told SKA members at their Feb. 6 meeting that the wording and arrows — as well as the loca- tion of some of the signs — were too baffling to be enforceable. Staff made some adjust- ments, which satisfied Sgt. Scott Osborne, leader of the Sheriff's Office's Community Policing Station on the island, so deputies began writing tickets when residents alerted them to illegally parked vehicles. THE LAW News Leader research into county and state laws shows that Section 122-141 of the Sarasota County Code of Ordinances says, "Any person Parking a Vehicle in violation of or contrary to the Signs, and/or posted instructions located thereon, on any County road, street, bridge or right-of-way shall be punishable by a civil fine of $25.00, and the disposition thereof shall be governed by the provisions of [the Florida State Statutes]." Additionally, Sgt. Osborne of the Sheriff's Office confirmed for the News Leader that the county's $25 fine is for the day of the viola- tion. Another citation may be written only if the driver moves the vehicle and then returns and parks it illegally again, Wendy Rose, community affairs manager for the Sheriff's Office, told the News Leader after checking with Osborne. The state laws referenced above say that if a person has outstanding parking tickets, the Tax Collector's Office is to refuse to issue a license plate or revalidation sticker "until the person presents a receipt from the govern- mental entity or the clerk of court [providing] the data showing that the fines outstanding have been paid." A proposal for public parking on a vacant lot at Treasure Boat Way and Ocean Boulevard, shown in May 2012, was shot down by residents fretful about the noise its use would create in their neighborhood. File photo Sarasota News Leader May 2, 2014 Page 69