In the Florida town of Palm Coast, some businesses look the other way when tired truckers use their parking lots overnight — but the city’s Code Enforcement Board has informed those businesses that they need to stop allowing drivers to turn their parking lots into truck stops.
Palm Coast Prohibits Truck Parking Within City Limits
According to the city of Palm Coast’s website: “It is prohibited and unlawful to park or store a commercial vehicle anywhere in City limits at any time unless at a residence for a residential service call.”
Palm Coast does have a designated truck parking lot, but many drivers would like to avoid paying the $100 or so a month that it costs to use that lot, so they park in the large lots at businesses like Kohl’s.
Businesses That Look The Other Way Threatened With Fines
While Kohl’s does not officially allow truck parking and has posted signs that declare the area to be a tow-away zone, many truckers say that management often looks the other way. Said truck driver’s wife Rita Bielka, “Kohl’s allows people to do it, but didn’t condone it. … They weren’t going to tell us yes or no. … They were supportive of truck drivers. I felt that.”
While the Kohl’s parking lot used to host just a couple of trucks overnight, the number has apparently grown to a dozen or more trucks. This, in turn, reportedly resulted in a number of complaints to the city’s Code Enforcement Board, which has informed Kohl’s that they will face fines if they continue to allow truck parking on their lot. Management at Kohl’s stated that the problem is being addressed.
Walmart has received a similar warning from the Code Enforcement Board. They are scheduled to go before the Code Enforcement Board in August.
The Code Enforcement Board has the power to issue fines of $1000 per day. They can issue even more for repeat offenders.
Sources:
The Palm Coast Observer