toledoblade.com --

The Finkbeiner administration said Monday it won't back down from ticketing people who park illegally on their property nor would it rescind any tickets already written.

"We want to make it clear that these types of violations are citywide," said Lourdes Santiago, assistant chief of staff to Mayor Carty Finkbeiner.

Councilman D. Michael Collins took up the cause of fighting the tickets after six people in the 400 and 500 blocks of North Holland-Sylvania Road were ticketed.

"The city law director agreed with me that the tickets are defective," Mr. Collins said after a hearing he convened Monday.

During the heated committee meeting, several residents blasted the city and Sue Frederick, its commissioner of streets, bridges, and harbor, for writing the $25 tickets.

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Bruce Lulfs of 404 North Holland-Sylvania said he was appalled when he found a ticket on his windshield because his vehicle was parked on a "driveway approach," which he considers a legal place to park.

Mayor Finkbeiner said last night the tickets would "not be torn up," and Ms. Frederick was not in error. "They actually got a break on the cost," he said. "If they received the same ticket from Park Smart or the Toledo Police Department, it carries a $75 charge with it, so the tickets will not be torn up, and the law will continued to be enforced."

He said those who choose not to pay the $25 would be issued a new

$75 ticket.

"The vast majority have paid their tickets," Mr. Finkbeiner said. "The city has the authority to ticket folks parking their cars in their front yards illegally."

Ms. Frederick has written 50 tickets since becoming commissioner about six months ago.

Shelly Cousino of 418 North Holland-Sylvania doubted Ms. Frederick visited her area in response to a complaint, as the commissioner claimed. "What I think the motive is that it's cheaper to pay the $25 than to fight [for] the principle," Ms. Cousino said.

Ms. Frederick, who like City Council members and the law director has the authority to write citations, admitted the tickets didn't offer an appeal process.

She said it was decided to let people appeal to a three-member nuisance abatement board, but filing an appeal carries a $50 fee.

The $50 would not be refunded if a person lost the appeal, Ms. Frederick said, and the person still would be liable for the $25 fine.

Law Director Adam Loukx said the nuisance abatement board would not have jurisdiction over tickets written by Ms. Frederick.

Ms. Frederick then offered to have people appeal the tickets to Park Smart, the downtown firm that has a contract with the city to monitor parking meters.

Mr. Collins objected to that as well. "You are not going to have your cake and eat it," he said.

Mr. Loukx said he would issue a legal opinion on the matter.

Ms. Frederick had the tickets printed herself. It misspelled the word "violation" as "violatation."

Ms. Frederick said parking on a gravel driveway is legal but parking vehicles on gravel-covered areas in the front or side lots of a home is against the law. She said that's why people along North Holland-Sylvania and elsewhere got tickets.

Dave Welch, who formerly held the commissioner position, did not write tickets.

He developed the plan but left the department before it was implemented, Ms. Frederick said.

Contact Ignazio Messina at:
imessina@theblade.com
or 419-724-6171.

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