Clamping Down On Booting

LAW WOULD SET MAXIMUM FEE, REQUIRE COMPANY IDENTIFICATION

FAYETTEVILLE - Mayor Lioneld Jordan wants to regulate companies using wheel clamps, or “boots,” to immobilize illegally parked vehicles.

Jordan said the city receives frequent complaints from people whose cars are booted by companies that demand steep payments toremove the devices.

“Booting has become quite a chapter in the history of paid parking,” Jordan said during a City Council session Tuesday. He emphasized the city doesn’t boot cars in public lots and only tows in rare cases, such as when a vehicle is blocking someone’s driveway or is parked in an emergency zone. Residents’ complaints have come from people who park inprivate lots.

An ordinance aldermen will consider next week would set a maximum $40 fee for removing a wheel clamp. Hawkeye Parking Enforcement of Dallas has regularly charged $100 or more to remove boots from cars parked in the Fayetteville Depot and Clubhaus Fitness lots on Dickson Street anda private lot across from the John Paul Hammerschmidt Federal Building on Mountain Street.

The proposal, penned by City Attorney Kit Williams using input from the Ordinance Review Committee, would also require private parking lot owners to post signs listing the name, address and phone number of a booting company. Workers would have to wear a company uniform, display photo ID, provide a receipt and remove a boot within 15 minutes of someone offering payment,or the company would face an up to $500 fine. A criminal background check from the Arkansas State Police could be required for each employee, too.

Cities and counties didn’t have the authority to regulate booting until a state law, sponsored by Rep. David Whitaker, D-Fayetteville, went into eft ect earlier this month.

Williams said Fayetteville’s proposal would function similar to a city law preventing towing companies from charging more than $60 to tow a vehicle from a paid parking lot in the downtown entertainment district.

Greg House with Fayetteville Depot, which owns the parking lot outside Chipotle Mexican Grill and an Arsaga’s coffee shop on Dickson Street, said Tuesday he began contracting with Hawkeye Parking Enforcement after multiple complaints about towing.

House said he should be able to have a mechanism for enforcing paid parking in his private lot. He added he can’t ticket vehicles like the city. He said he’s worked with Hawkeye to reduce booting fees during day hours.

House questioned why booting companies shouldbe limited to a $40 fee when the city issues $70 tickets to people who park illegally in residential areas.

“For them to come in and force somebody out of business so they’re the only game in town, that’s a little strange,” he said.

City tickets for overtime parking in public lots and in numbered spaces along Dickson Street are $15.

The proposal wouldn’t apply to illegally parked cars at the University of Arkansas.

According to the university’s website, vehicles there can be booted after three or more unpaid parking violations.

News, Pages 1 on 08/28/2013

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