City of Alexandria, Virginia
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MEMORANDUM
DATE: APRIL 9, 2026
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL
THROUGH: JAMES F. PARAJON, CITY MANAGER
FROM: LEAH RILEY, DIRECTOR, TRANSPORTATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES
DOCKET TITLE:
TITLE
Introduction and First Reading. Consideration of Passage on First Reading of an Ordinance to amend and reordain Section 3-2-354 of Article S (Payment, Contest and Enforcement of Parking Citations) of Chapter 2 (Taxation) of Title 3 (Finance, Taxation and Procurement) and Section 10-4-48 (Penalties for violations of this chapter) of Chapter 4 (Stopping, Standing and Parking) of Title 10 (Motor Vehicles and Traffic) of the Code of the City of Alexandria, Virginia, 1981, as amended. [ROLL-CALL VOTE]
BODY
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ISSUE: Consideration of an ordinance to increase the penalties for parking violations.
RECOMMENDATION: That City Council:
1. Introduce the proposed ordinance on first reading,
2. Set the ordinance for public hearing on Saturday, April 18, 2026, and
3. Set it for second reading and final passage on April 29, 2026, with budget adoption.
BACKGROUND: The City Code establishes regulations related to parking and sets the amount of a penalty to be issued for violation of these regulations. These penalties, referred to as parking citations, are issued by the Police Department, primarily by the Parking Enforcement Unit. In most cases, the penalty is $40. Some violations carry higher penalties, such as parking in a High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane ($200) and parking in a space reserved for a person with a disability ($500). There are also escalating penalties established for parking heavy vehicles in commercial business areas ranging from $100 for the first violation to $350 for the third and subsequent violation.
DISCUSSION: The last time the amount of a parking citation was increased was in 2007, when it was increased from $25 to $40 for parking violations except for meter violations. In 2010, the parking citation for meter violations was increased to $40 to align with other parking violations.
Staff proposes to increase the amount of a parking citation for most violations to $50. This would include violations related to residential permit parking, meters, other time restrictions, no parking areas, and parking in bike lanes. This amendment would not increase parking citations that are already higher than $40. This proposed increase would bring the amount of a parking citation in Alexandria in line with the City’s surrounding jurisdictions. See Attachment 3 for a summary of parking citation fees in other jurisdictions.
FISCAL IMPACT: The proposed increase to parking citations would generate additional revenue of approximately $900,000 annually, assuming an average of 90,000 citations are issued. However, this figure may be less as compliance improves due to people avoiding the risk of a higher citation. There is a minor cost to update the parking enforcement software with the new penalty amount and purchase new ticket stock with updated fees.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: Ordinance Cover
Attachment 2: Ordinance
Attachment 3: Parking Citations Penalties in Other Jurisdictions
STAFF:
Emily A. Baker, P.E., Deputy City Manager
Cheran Ivery, City Attorney
Lindsay Dubin, Assistant City Attorney
Tarrick McGuire, Police Chief
Captain Jerry Newcomb, Police
Lieutenant Nick Lion, Police
Sargeant Jamie Gernatt, Police
Hillary Orr, Deputy Director, T&ES
Katye North, Division Chief, T&ES, Mobility Services
Sheila McGraw, Principal Planner, T&ES, Mobility Services