RACINE — A Racine resident is asking for accommodations for people with disabilities who live in neighborhoods subject to alternate side parking rules after receiving an unexpected ticket.
Watch: Racine man seeks disability accommodations for alternate-side parking
Mike Sacotte worked with the city to install two signs designating a parking space for people with disabilities in front of his home in Racine. He paid $100 to submit an application for the handicap parking permit and said it was an easy process.
"I'm parked right in front now. Getting in and out of the car — it's easy," Sacotte said.
He said having the signs has been great under normal circumstances.
"Normally, I have no problems," Sacotte said.
But with alternate side parking rules in place, there are some hurdles. Sacotte received a $30 parking ticket earlier this month.
"I parked in the handicap at night, and then I got a parking ticket," Sacotte said. "My address is an even number, so that meant I should've been on the opposite side, but I always parked in the handicapped area."
"Yes, it surprised me," Sacotte said.
In the city of Racine, alternate side parking rules are in effect seven days a week from December 1 to April 1, from 2 to 6 a.m. The city's municipal code says people with disabled parking designations are not exempt from complying with these rules.
"It just didn't even seem right," Sacotte said.
TMJ4 reached out to City of Racine officials asking if people with disabled parking designations can request an exemption to alternate side parking rules or if they can appeal their tickets.
"Let us park where we can, where we're allowed to," Sacotte said.
In an email, a city spokesperson said in part that according to Racine Police Department Chief Alex Ramirez, ticket recipients can establish a court date where "the resident can explain the circumstances and request that the judge dismiss the citation."
The city also encourages residents with questions about a citation to contact them directly, saying "many issues can be clarified or resolved quickly by speaking with the appropriate department."
For Sacotte, he'd like to see an immediate change.
"I mean, I just hope they would change and allow it," said Sacotte, who believes a change would benefit residents with disabilities across the city.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist 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.
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