Town hall meetings on PARKAtlanta:
Dec. 2 / 6:30 p.m. / Atlanta City Hall / 55 Trinity Ave., Southwest Atlanta
Dec. 10 / 6:30 p.m. / Inman Middle School / 774 Virginia Ave., Northeast Atlanta
Final date, time and location to be announced.
Have an opinion on PARKAtlanta? City leaders are encouraging residents to reach out with their concerns or feedback via the following:
Email: atlantacouncil@atlantaga.gov
Twitter: @ATLCouncil using the hashtag: #parkatlanta2016
Facebook: Atlantacitycouncil
Phone: 404-330-6823 or 404-330-6775
For years, Atlantans have grumbled about the city’s parking meter police, PARKAtlanta. Now — as the company’s contract is set to expire — city leaders invite residents to share their concerns.
The Atlanta City Council’s transportation committee, led by Councilwoman Felicia Moore, will hold a series of town hall meetings over the parking enforcement program.
PARKAtlanta, run by Milwaukee-based Duncan Solutions, has monitored and ticketed illegal on-street parking since 2009. Since its inception, the company has come under fire for aggressive and at-times erroneous ticketing and booting, not to mention confusing signage and high fees.
According to the original contract, Duncan Solutions agreed to pay Atlanta $5.5 million a year, a figure that was later amended to $5.3 million. The company keeps any additional revenue.
The company’s seven-year contract will expire in 2016. Atlanta officials could hire a new company or bring parking enforcement operations in-house.
Mayor Kasim Reed has indicated a willingness to sever ties with PARKAtlanta. Speaking at a community event last month, Reed said while complaints are to be expected when implementing a new program, they’ve remained a problem.
“My issue is those complaints have been sustained over a long period of time and that suggests that we need to do some things differently,” he said.
The meetings, which kick off Dec. 2, will be broadcast on Channel 26, as well as online.
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