JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Parking problems in the Riverside area are now drawing the attention of city parking enforcement.
Areas surrounding popular nightspots near Park and College Street have become a nuisance for patrons and homeowners. As the spots fill up, people begin parking in adjacent neighborhoods - many times blocking driveways or even parking in people's yards.
Now if that happens, people will likely be ticketed.
In the decade Carol Muttillo has lived in the neighborhood, she has seen parking overflow from King Street down to her street and progressively worsen.
Muttillo said it's pretty quiet on Monday nights, but nights closer to the weekend are a different story.
"Other nights it's bumper to bumper," said Muttillo. "They block your driveway, they play loud music."
The city is now beginning to aggressively ticket cars illegally parked.
"Right now they're focusing on people parking where there are no spots," said Steve Flores, the owner of Kickbacks Gastropub on King Street. "They're trying to prevent people from blocking driveways is the main thing."
Flores is on a city commission to look at the parking issue. He said only recently has the city started requiring parking spots for every new business that goes up.
Kickbacks is in the process of expansion, and Flores said they're required to put in a new 33-space lot to accommodate the expansion. Flores believes this new regulation for opening businesses should prevent the overflow of illegally parked cars.