As an enterprise fund, the city of Sarasota’s Parking Division is intended to cover its own expenses. Efforts so far to raise revenue and reduce expenses such as adding paid street parking at Lido Beach and gateless entry and exit at city garages still left the fund short on the balance sheet, placing the financial burden on the citywide tax base rather than the users.
Resistant to an increase in parking fees, the Sarasota City Commission on May 4 unanimously approved extending parking enforcement hours in city-owned spaces and adding $5 to all current citation rates except ADA violations, which will remain at $250.
Effective June 1, 2026, city-owned parking garages and surface lots will extend parking enforcement 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Enforcement on paid on-street parking spaces will extend to 8 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week…