MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee residents would receive warning letters before their vehicles are towed for unpaid parking tickets, under a new ordinance passed by the Common Council.
The measure, which has the mayor's support, addresses a long-standing concern from community members who have experienced the shock and financial burden of unexpected vehicle towing.
The ordinance would send Milwaukee residents a warning letter outlining a 60-day deadline to either pay their tickets in full or set up a payment plan. If that doesn't happen, their car could be towed after the deadline passes.
"I had to contact non-emergency because I thought my car was stolen," said Alisha Farr, a Milwaukee resident who discovered her car had been towed last year for being classified as a habitual parking violator.
Watch: Milwaukee set to notify car owners before towing for unpaid parking tickets
Currently, Milwaukee residents receive no notification before their vehicles are impounded for several unpaid parking tickets.
"Some days you have a ticket on your car and it flies off, sometimes you don't know," Farr said.
Alderman Scott Spiker authored the legislation and voiced support for the change during the council meeting.
"This improves our current regime," Spiker said.
The meeting revealed a breakdown of habitual parking violators by zip code. The zip code with the most is 53209, according to city data.
"If we don’t pass this ordinance, which attempts to reach out to those communities and say this is our policy then we’re hurting them," Spiker said.
Alderman Russell Stamper also backed the measure.
"You get an opportunity not to get your car towed. That's better," Stamper said.
However, not all council members were fully convinced. Some raised concerns about implementation during a lengthy debate.
"Some people have no address at all. What about lost and stolen mail?" Alderman Lamont Westmoreland said.
Despite these concerns, the ordinance passed, much to the relief of residents like Farr.
"Because then I know I've got a little time to pay the tickets off before I have to spend $400 to get my car out of the impound," Farr said when asked why she supported the change.
According to city data, more than 4,000 cars were towed in Milwaukee last year for owners failing to pay five or more parking tickets. The new notification system would cost the city approximately $30,000 to send warning letters to about 20,000 people considered habitual parking violators.
It's unclear when the warning letters would start getting sent to residents, a city spokesperson told TMJ4.
This story was reported by journalist Ben Jordan and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
It’s about time to watch on your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.
Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.
