Springfield, Illinois, has been issuing a Walmart store thousands of dollars worth of fines for allowing semi trucks to park overnight in its lot.
Springfield Walmart Faces Stiff Penalties From City For Allowing Truck Parking
According to a report in the State Journal-Register, the Walmart on 1100 Lejune Drive was issued fines of $500 per day between the dates of November 8 and December 13 for allowing semi trucks to park in their lot. These thirty days of penalties combined with an additional  $565 fine adds up to a total of $18,065.
South side Walmart hit with $18K in fines for semi parking https://t.co/i3tSfB2c0u
— Sangamon Courier (@sangcourier) February 8, 2018
The city of Springfield says that the fines were issued because of zoning violations. They say that when the store was built, Walmart did not detail plans to allow trucks to park overnight in its parking lot.
From a zoning violation notice issued to the Walmart location: “At no point during the plan review and permitting process did Wal-Mart submit a plan indicating the use of their parking lot spaces by semi-traffic for extended periods of time.”
The city believes that the trucks parked in the lot reduce visibility and could have a negative impact on safety.
After the complaint about the truck parking/zoning issue was originally made last spring, Walmart vowed to hire more security to keep trucks from parking in the lot. However, the city says that during follow up inspections, they have counted as many as 18 trucks parked overnight in the Walmart parking lot.
The city has asked the Walmart to restripe the parking lot to include larger spaces for trucks.
The Springfield Walmart has a meeting scheduled with city administrators to discuss a new parking plan and to receive the final fine assessment on March 21.