ATLANTA — Parking problems in Midtown are heating up after changes are leading to notices.
Hundreds of people are getting hit with letters after a parking lot at Midtown Promenade started charging for parking back in June. People have been showing 11Alive their tickets ranging from $50 to $85.
"I have a fine from a parking agency that runs the parking at the Midtown Promenade. I went to meet a friend for dinner in September and a couple weeks later I got a fine for $50 that they dropped to $25 since it was my first offense," Alan Colussy said.
He's seen the signs for some time, but says the rules weren't enforced and businesses didn't say anything about the change
"There could've been some update saying they're actually enforcing the pay for parking," Colussy said.
When 11Alive reviewed the notices they were for multiple reasons. Some didn't pay, some validated parking and it didn't work, others just cut through and still got a letter. The company Professional Parking Management (PPM) said these aren't tickets or fines but notices being sent if rules are violated and the change is deter people from parking and staying the day.
"I can see why they need some way to control the parking in that area because of it's congestion," Floyd Taylor who lives in Buckhead said.
He says he complied with the rules and got it validated while attending the Out on Film Festival two weeks ago.
"I got three tickets! The theatre staff was very nice and tells you what to do. As long as you scan the code you'll have 4 hours free parking. The confusion is that we complied with the parking signs to scan the QR code and enter our information and then went into the theater to scan the QR code there which gave us two extra hours of parking for a total of 4 hours. Somehow the parking company system did not register the extra 2 hours," Floyd said.
The company sent 11Alive the following statement after we brought people's concerns to them.
“Professional Parking Management (PPM) was engaged in June to manage existing parking procedures to ensure adequate parking is available for retail guests. The policy includes no-cost parking up to 2 hours at the upper Trader Joe’s lot and 2 hours free with registration at the lower parking area. In both parking areas, these time limits can be extended with an additional validation period at participating retailers," the statement said.
It added that there is no intention of charging locals for driving through the facility -- but drivers who used the parking lot multiple times as a shortcut may have received a notice in error during the initial configuration.
"PPM made technical adjustments to the system to prevent this in the future, and we also have seen a decrease in total notices as the public becomes familiar with the validation process," the statement said. "Parking guests who believe they received a notice in error or have inquiries related to the program are encouraged to contact our customer service team by following the instructions on the parking charge notice or calling 1-844-999-7275.”