{"id":5835,"date":"2014-01-16T07:36:45","date_gmt":"2014-01-16T12:36:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myparkingsign.com\/blog\/?p=5835"},"modified":"2024-05-27T07:04:41","modified_gmt":"2024-05-27T11:04:41","slug":"private-parking-enforcement-chicago","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myparkingsign.com/blog\/private-parking-enforcement-chicago\/","title":{"rendered":"Should private companies issue parking tickets?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since 2010, LAZ Parking\u2019s private officers have been writing thousands of tickets for parking violations in Chicago. \u00a0Hired by the city\u2019s private concessionaire, Chicago Parking Meters, LAZ parking has managed to raise over 15 million in revenue to date,\u00a0leaving some to wonder<\/a>\u00a0if there is more than meets the eye.<\/p>\n

In 2008, Chicago Parking Meters (CPM) took over the operation of 36,000 public parking meters for an up-front payment of $1.2 billion to the cash-strapped city. Since then, it has managed to\u00a0recover much of its initial investment<\/a>–\u00a0through hiked prices and increased hours of enforcement. According to Alderman Scott Waguespack — one of the few council members who opposed the 75-year contract — CPM needs less than ten years before it can sit back and enjoy pure profits for the remaining 60 years. The private consortium that owns CPM (consisting of financial giant Morgan Stanley, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and Allianz Capital Partners)\u00a0stands to earn $9.58 billion in profit, according to Bloomberg BusinessWeek. The\u00a0tightly written clauses<\/a>\u00a0have ensured the private consortium never stops making money during its term.<\/p>\n

\"LAZ

A Chicago resident dresses up as LAZ Parking-enforced ticket on Halloween. Image by Quinn Dombrowski<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n

Private parking enforcement means selling police power to corporations<\/b><\/h2>\n

Besides putting Chicago taxpayers in a fix by leasing public assets for a fraction of their worth, the deal also forced the city to hand over police power to private corporations. Thomas Geoghegan, practicing attorney and author of several books tells The Nation<\/i><\/a>, \u201c…A seventy-five-year-agreement to run parking meters is an unconstitutional restriction on the police power \u2014 the sovereign right of the city to control its public streets and ways\u2026. This is a very traditional, conservative, really, argument: what the City of Chicago did was not sell the meters. They sold the police power of the city.\u201d<\/p>\n

The practice of taking parking tickets from a private contractor doesn’t sit well with residents of other cities, either. Nguyen of San Diego, who received a parking ticket from a private parking enforcement, says, \u201cIt feels wrong to get the ticket\u2026 because I don\u2019t like the idea of private companies handing out citations like they\u2019re public authorities. I don\u2019t think most people would.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lawlessness prevails when private parking management works to meet yearly quotas<\/b><\/h2>\n

In Los Angeles, California, where Xerox State and Local Solutions handles the city\u2019s parking, residents complained last year that the company rejected many appeals to contest their parking tickets. LA Times reports, \u201cthe company has been trying to keep more parking revenue by stonewalling attempts to fight tickets.\u201d City data reflects that Xerox has been rejecting many appeals.<\/p>\n

The abuse of law enforcement power isn’t limited to the U.S., either. To increase revenues that had slumped last year, NSL, the UK’s biggest parking contractor, asked its partners and staff to increase their ticket issuing rates. The civil enforcement officers admitted to BBC<\/a> that they \u201csubmitted fraudulent photographic evidence and fabricated evidence in pocket books to help increase the number of penalty charge notices (PCNs) issued.\u201d<\/p>\n

To some, private parking enforcement is just more efficient<\/b><\/h2>\n

Even though there are plenty who oppose privatized parking, either for its malpractices or its erroneous issuing of tickets (ParkAtlanta, anyone?), there are others who think it doesn\u2019t matter who hands out the tickets, as long as they do their job well. Private parking enforcement officers are just as capable of spotting a violation and writing a ticket, since they go through the same training procedure<\/a> laid out by the city.<\/p>\n

Private companies can also afford to hire more people to take over daily operations, something cities with their restricted budgets cannot accomplish \u2014 at least not instantaneously. Cincinnati, for example, loses almost $9 million\u00a0a year in parking revenue\u00a0due to understaffing, plus problems like broken meters and outdated technology.<\/p>\n

Private parking enforcement doesn’t seem a big deal at a time when anyone can become a parking enforcement officer anyway. Apps like SpotSquad<\/a> encourage people to snap photos of parking violations they witness and send them to the police or private parking operators. If the violation results in a fine, informants get a cut deposited into their bank accounts or a charity of their choice.<\/p>\n

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