DENVER — After complaints about skyrocketing parking fines, one member of the Denver City Council is considering placing a cap on the costs or potentially regulating private parking lots in downtown Denver.
For years, Denver7 Investigates has covered issues with private parking lots in the city center, but recently, viewers have reached out to us about how high the parking fines at these lots are.
One viewer, Nik, paid an extra "game day" rate of $25 to park in an LAZ Parking lot on Blake Street during a Rockies game. A few days later, he said, a notice came in the mail. For staying past 11 p.m., he was billed $102.
"We were here for about an extra hour, and finding a $100 fee is our penalty felt very predatory," Nik told Denver7's Jaclyn Allen. "It definitely discourages me from coming down to park here and support the small businesses."
In recent years, the City of Denver has been cracking down on issues with privately owned lots. Since the start of the year, the city has issued more than 80 citations or warnings to private lots that are not licensed. However, when it comes to parking fees or fines, Eric Escudero with Denver's Department of Excise and Licenses said the city's hands are tied.
"So, someone gets a ticket, we don't have the legal authority to make a private parking operator refund that ticket," said Escudero. "And they have to go through a legal process, which can be costly for consumers, because they may have to hire a lawyer or go to court."
We took viewers' concerns to Denver City Councilman Chris Hinds, who is concerned that the high fines could deter people from coming downtown.
"We should be encouraging people to come here and spend their money downtown and get sales tax revenue, and this is just totally getting in the way," said Hinds. "We're not doing enough. We're investigating how we can do more."
Hinds said he has heard complaints from people who report legally parking, paying, leaving before their time expires, and still receiving a ticket. When they appeal, that appeal is denied in a process they perceive as biased and unfair.
Additionally, he is concerned about the hours posted on some parking lots and when the times expire for certain rates.
"For example, sometimes they expire at 5 p.m.," said Hinds. "If you work from eight to five, nine to five, whatever, and you still have to get to your vehicle, that could be considered predatory, too. If only it expired at 6 p.m., then people who work until five could then still get to their vehicle without having to pay for an evening permit, as well."
Parking Revenue Recovery Services handles compliance management for most of Denver's private lots. PRRS co-founder John Conway told Denver7 Investigates that the PRRS signs are clear that they can charge up to $250 per violation, and he confirmed that the parking fees have increased after the company eliminated a convenience fee.
When we pointed out that a sign expressly states that the fine for expired parking is $92, but people are being charged $102, Conway said that was an LAZ Parking sign and "needs to be updated."
Meanwhile, Hinds said he plans to compare what other cities do to regulate private parking, especially when it comes to what he called "cruel" fees.
"We're researching ways that we can work with the executive branch to create new legislation that protects consumers and allows parking lot operators to operate a lot, encourage people to come downtown, encourage them to only park for as long as they need, without being punitive or cruel to those same users," said Hinds.
