New Orleans officials are cracking down on a costly backlog of unpaid parking tickets to help thwart an expected multimillion dollar budget deficit this year.
Mayor Helena Moreno’s administration plans to hire 50 new parking enforcement officers to handle violations and attack $100 million in unpaid fines and fees, Chief Administrative Officer Joe Giarrusso said last week at the first City Council Budget Committee meeting under the new administration.
The city has already begun tackling violations. Treme resident Jolie Gautreau woke up earlier this month to find a boot on her car parked outside her home, and a notice saying she owned $1,400 in tickets. Her car was later towed, and an Orleans Parish Civil District Court worker told her it was largely school zone camera tickets that triggered the boot…