Parking is a big concern in Anna Maria.
When Mayor Dan Murphy was elected in November 2014, he said he would do everything he could to make sure the city does not resort to permit parking to solve its problems.
Murphy’s response was to implement a parking enforcement plan that puts code enforcement officers on patrol seven days a week.
“It works, and we will continue to enforce parking on a reasonable, but stringent basis,” Murphy said, May 4. “People shouldn’t have to buy a pass if they want to visit here.”
In May 2015, Pamela Gibbs was hired to be the city’s full-time code enforcement manager. Gibbs replaced part-time code enforcement officer Gerry Rathvon, who worked three days a week.
Rathvon said she wasn’t interested in more hours or a department of employees to manage.
The city also trained 12 new part-time code enforcement officers in June 2015.
Gibbs said she’s received a lot of praise from Anna Maria residents for enforcing parking rules and issuing tickets.
“I’d say nine-out-of-10 people are happy we’re enforcing the rules,” Gibbs said, May 4.
The May 11 issue of The Islander included a letter from Bradenton Beach resident Stephen Kiraly concerning a recent parking citation and the experience he had as a result in Anna Maria.
In his letter, Kiraly said he received a ticket April 30 for parking his motor scooter at an angle outside Sign of the Mermaid Restaurant, 9707 Gulf Drive, Anna Maria.
Kiraly said during an interview May 11 that several people at the restaurant have told him a lot of parking tickets have been written there.
A block north of the restaurant, Ginny’s & Jane E’s at the Old IGA has a sign inside warning customers of Anna Maria’s parking rules.
“This is a tourist town,” Kiraly said. “If they keep writing tickets like this, then they’re going to scare everyone away.”
From May 2015-April 2016, parking citations have earned $106,264 for the city general fund.
A parking citation costs $35. A $15 late fee is added if the ticket is unpaid seven days or more.
Prior to the new enforcement policies — March 2014-May 2015 — the city collected $47,705 from parking fees.
The ticket price rose from $30 to $35 — the maximum allowed by state law — in December 2014.
In December 2015, the city contracted Complus Data Innovations, a collections company in New York. Complus reports a 94 percent collection rate for newly issued tickets and an 85 percent collection rate for previously unpaid tickets.
The service costs the city a one-time $9,000 fee, plus a 12 percent fee per ticket issued.