Atlanta Parking Ticket Fines Could Rise During Festivals
Those who park illegally in neighborhoods during Atlanta’s largest festivals could soon pay triple the amount for a parking ticket.
Right now, your ticket would be $25 if you park illegally in a neighborhood with permit parking during a festival. But the Atlanta City Council could soon decide whether to raise those tickets to $75 during festivals that draw crowds of more than 50,000 people. Those include: Music Midtown, the Dogwood Festival and the Peachtree Road Race.
City Councilman Kwanza Hall says the proposal comes after numerous complaints, particularly from those who live near Piedmont Park.
“Just this last year during the Dogwood Festival over 500 citations were given, and that’s just too many people who are residents in that area who were not able to park their cars,” says Hall.
But Councilman Andre Dickens worries about some Grady High School students who are forced out of the school’s parking lot during events like Music Midtown. He’s wants to make those who participate in afterschool activities and are forced to park on the street won’t be ticketed.
“Immediately some segment will be ticketed, or they’d have to have some provisions made by the organizers of the event or the staff here,” says Dickens. “Something has to happen, or we’re just leading them into an event where they’re going to be fined.”
The proposal is currently in the city’s transportation committee while council members await input from neighborhood planning units.