PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — There is a parking problem in Pasco County.
Real Time Traffic Expert Chuck Henson visited a community where any car not parked in the driveway runs the risk of blocking access to emergency vehicles and city services.
“There are times, probably when everyone is home from work, that you will see cars parked up on the…like, over the sidewalk, up on the CBD property and then sometimes they’re just out in middle of the street,” said resident Regan Gross.
She lives in the Dupree Lakes community of Pasco County.
Most of the driveways have two lanes, meaning four cars could technically park there.
Yet, at the end of the day, many of those cars end up in the street, creating a hazard.
Chuck observed a lawn service truck parked on the left and a car on the right and paced off the distance in between – four steps.
“Four months ago there was a fire behind – because we have a lot of conservation – heavily wooded areas behind these homes and there was a big brush fire,” Gross said. “And luckily the fire truck just barely made it through, but there were cars that were double parked and on a curve where the fire truck had to get past.”
Regan says the gentleman who does her trash pickup tells a similar story.
“And he said it’s wide-spread and there have been instances where he was unable to maneuver his truck to pick up, to do waste collection,” she said. “And he had to call the police and have a couple of cars towed.”
Like many communities, Dupree Lakes just wants the existing laws enforced.
Amanda Hunter with the Pasco Sheriff’s Office says they do enforce parking laws, but there are only so many deputies.
“PSO ranks 64th of the 67 counties for deputies per 1,000 citizens served and due to the realities this presents, must focus our limited resources on priority calls,” Hunter said.
She did offer a possible solution for those communities with a budget.
That solution involved any citizen, community or HOA group to use private or personal funds to hire off-duty deputies, then specifically dedicate them to parking enforcement.
Henson asked specifically if an off-duty deputy has the authority to issue citations and the answer is yes. They have full law enforcement powers.
