Councilman ponders increasing parking fines

Las Vegas issues thousands of parking tickets each year and rakes in millions of dollars in fines and penalties.

In fact, 2009 might be a record year for collections because of aggressive changes in how the city goes after unpaid citations.

So why not milk that for all it's worth? That is -- given that city revenues are slumping in other areas -- why not increase parking fines?

That's what City Councilman Steve Wolfson was wondering Thursday morning after hearing a report on parking fine collections.

In 2008, the last year for which complete information is available, the city issued $7.9 million worth of parking citations and fines, and actually collected $6.9 million.

"That's a lot of parking tickets," exclaimed Wolfson. "If we doubled the penalty, we would double the revenue -- theoretically.

"Why don't we do it?"

It would be up to the City Council to do so, noted City Attorney Brad Jerbic.

After the meeting, Wolfson said he wasn't ready to recommend that the city immediately increase parking fines, but he will ask for the issue to be studied.

"I don't know that it's the right thing to do, but it's something worth exploring," Wolfson said.

And he acknowledged that even thinking about increasing fines could make people angry at him. But then again, he was unopposed this year for re-election and isn't scheduled to face voters again until 2013.

Revenue from parking fines, which range from $20 for overstaying a meter to $250 for parking in a fire lane, pays for the cost of parking enforcement as well as debt service on the city's parking garages.

The city has stepped up fine collections in several ways, such as quickly placing car registration holds on vehicles with outstanding tickets, giving people one last chance to pay before calling in a collection agency, and promoting payments online and by phone.

But no one likes getting a parking ticket, which is why Michael Cornthwaite, owner of the Downtown Cocktail Room at Las Vegas Boulevard and Fremont Street, had an immediate reaction when told of Wolfson's idea:

"That's probably the worst news I've heard in a while."

That's because parking in the area already presents challenges, even just within the Fremont East entertainment district the city established in 2007.

Parking meters in the area are active until 8 p.m., which "without a doubt" works against efforts to draw people to the nightclub district.

"We've got no demand for the parking," Cornthwaite said. "When you don't have the demand, and you're taking the few people who come down here and giving them a bad experience, we're shooting ourselves in the feet."

In fact, he has urged city leaders to let people park for free on the streets downtown in order to encourage people to visit.

Still, he was confident the idea wouldn't go anywhere, saying that Councilman Ricki Barlow, Mayor Oscar Goodman and business development czar Scott Adams know the challenges being faced.

"They know better than to even consider something like that down here," Cornthwaite said.

It's not just an issue for nightclubs and entertainment. People with public business have to deal with parking challenges, too.

Spots in the Las Vegas City Hall parking garage, for instance, are lined with meters, and it's pay-to-park only around the Regional Justice Center -- either on the street, in the building's parking garage or in a private lot nearby.

Those with business in a court or before the City Council aren't always in control of the pace of public business, and could end up being ticketed while trying to attend to their civic obligations.

Wolfson acknowledged that, and it was pointed out as well by Paul Workman, a business executive who sits with Wolfson on the Las Vegas Audit Oversight Committee, which is where the parking ticket report was presented.

Workman said any study of increasing parking fines needs input from businesses and citizens, especially those who are trying to plant a flag downtown.

"Let's not make it harder to do business," he said. "Are you sure you want to do that?"

Contact reporter Alan Choate at achoate@reviewjournal.com or 702-229-6435.