Parking fines within city limits – including the ever popular “just leave the car on the Plaza, its only $20” variety – are going up, as the Sonoma City Council authorized last week.
Police Chief Bret Sackett called for the increase to bring Sonoma fines, which he said were among the lowest in the county, in line with regional counterparts. The hike also offsets a state surcharge of $3 for every citation.
Though approved, the police department can’t confirm when the fee hike will take effect, though it should be soon. With some fees doubling and even tripling, you may not want to take the chance.
Sackett said his department writes 2,200 citations annually and is on pace to tally $16,000 in fines this year. With its $3 per-ticket surcharge imposed January 1, the state will snag $6,600 of those proceeds.
Sackett did not forecast how much money the new fines might bring in. Money generated by parking fines is split evenly between the City of Sonoma and Sonoma County, which handles collection and appeals.
The revision of the fine structure is the first since 2002.
The city council focused on the fine for parking too long in a time zone. The current fee of $20 “is a deal,” said council member August Sebastiani, and isn’t much of deterrent to visitors to the Plaza who pay more than that to park in a San Francisco garage. The new fine is $40.
Sebastiani and Mayor Ken Brown also mentioned the how Plaza merchants rack up parking fines while denying the space to shoppers. A higher ticket would discourage them from treating it as a business expense, Brown said.
New parking fines coming to a windshield near you
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