People who park their cars in the city of Bloomington can now accumulate two extra unpaid parking tickets before their car gets towed.

But the increase in the towing threshold, from four to six unpaid citations, comes with a tradeoff.

The ordinance requires the car owner to pay off all the unpaid tickets in order to get their car back. The new local law was approved on a unanimous vote by the city council at its regular Wednesday session.

As part of the ordinance, the part of city code covering residential neighborhood parking permits also got some tweaks.

The ordinance adds a $100 fine for using a residential neighborhood parking permit in an unauthorized manner, and a $20 fine for not properly displaying a neighborhood parking permit when parked in a residential neighborhood zone.

The ordinance also allows a residential neighborhood parking permit holder whose permit is stolen to get a replacement at no charge, if they report the theft of the permit to the police.

It was the towing aspect of the new ordinance that drew most of the city council’s attention. Continue reading “Bloomington now wants parking tickets paid before towed cars get returned, residential neighborhood permit failure now subject to fine” →