Council asks staff to review parking fines and repeat‑offender options after citation drop in August

Raul Rodriguez, code enforcement supervisor, told the council that July produced roughly 773 parking citations (including 247 day‑time and 246 night‑time street‑sweeping citations) while August declined to about 95 citations after a departmental transition.

Rodriguez said the top citations remain expired tags, commercial vehicles and expired registrations. When asked about the August drop, he said the department had interim services in place that took time to coordinate with schools and traffic functions, and he expected numbers to rebound next month.

Councilmembers raised concerns about repeat offenders and whether the city’s fee schedule has been updated. The city manager reported the fee schedule had not been comprehensively reviewed in three to four years. Council discussed a range of enforcement options: citywide permit parking (requiring block petitions and analysis of driveway capacity), graduated fees for repeat offenses, and a tire‑tagging model used by Downey to enforce a 48–72‑hour removal rule with a possible 1,000‑foot relocation requirement to prevent moving a vehicle across the street to evade enforcement.

One councilmember asked staff to return with fee breakdowns and options for a public notice/warning period before issuing citations. Staff said they can present options that include: a month of warnings, a 48‑ or 72‑hour tagging enforcement period, permit parking for blocks that petition, and updates to permit fees (historic examples cited: $25 annual permits for specific blocks).

The council did not adopt an ordinance at the meeting but directed staff to prepare proposals and outreach plans that cover enforcement mechanics, timelines for warnings and expected costs.