East Lyme Board of Selectmen approve parking ordinance
East Lyme — The Board of Selectmen on Wednesday approved a parking ordinance that will enable the town’s police force, which became independent last year, to write tickets for parking violations, such as parking on the street too close to a driveway or ramp for a sidewalk, or parking in a crosswalk.
East Lyme Police Chief Michael Finkelstein thanked the board for moving the ordinance forward, after the discussion began within the Police Commission. He said the ordinance will give officers another tool and an option other than the state ticket system.
"We do get a lot of parking complaints," he said. "We generally try to resolve them with the operator or with the owner of the car to get the car moved and we try to do that short of tickets. However, when it is necessary, we'd like to have this other option in place."
Under the new parking ordinance, police officers will be able to issue $50 tickets for parking violations. The fines will double if not paid within two weeks.
The ordinance states that the East Lyme Police Department "is authorized to accept payment of the penalties from any person found to be in violation of this ordinance. The Department shall deposit such payments into an account designated by the Board of Selectmen. ..."
The selectmen approved the ordinance, after making a minor change to add a comma to one item in the draft ordinance. A resident had suggested that change during a public hearing held before the regular Board of Selectmen meeting.
After approving the new ordinance, the board repealed an existing ordinance that established $5 fines for illegal parking. Finkelstein has said the existing ordinance was out of date, not enforceable and did not detail an appeals process.
During the public hearing, Robert Vancour, a resident who was a police officer with the town of Glastonbury for more than 24 years and retired as a lieutenant, said in his experience it's easier and more effective to handle violations to handicap parking rules — perhaps attaching a $99 fine to violations — under a municipal ordinance. He also strongly suggested that the town use paint to emphasize to drivers the distances required under the parking regulations, such as a 10-foot no-parking area around a fire hydrant or 25-foot area around a crosswalk or stop sign.
Regarding the handicap parking violations, First Selectman Mark Nickerson said that due to the egregiousness of the violation, the board wanted to keep it as a hefty fine under the state statutes. Under state law, a person can be fined $150 for illegally parking in a handicapped space the first time, and $250 for subsequent violations.
The new ordinance will go into effect 10 days after publication of the notice of the Board of Selectmen's approval.
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