Pay parking lot owners warned

The Cebu City Council reminds privately-owned parking lot operators not to abuse and take advantage of Sinulog festivities in collecting exorbitant fees.

The City Council is also urging the Business Process and Licensing Office (BPLO) and the Cebu City Transportation Office (CCTO) to properly implement the ordinance that outlines the amount that should be paid as parking fees.

The ordinance is identified as City Ordinance 2089, or "An Ordinance for the Operation of Privately-owned 'Off-street' Pay Parking Areas in Cebu City” along with the penalties for non-compliance of the required standards.

Based on the City Ordinance, Class A (clean, paved and with toilet) parking lots will only collect P20 for the first three hours and P5 for each subsequent hour.

For Class B parking lots, P10 will be charged for the first three hours and P5 for each subsequent hour.

The warning came after the City Council has observed that the hosting of major events in the city usually leads to the imposition of exorbitant parking fees at private off-street parking facilities, causing inconvenience to attendees who choose to bring their vehicles.

Councilor James Anthony Cuenco, chairman of the committee on communication and transportation in the City Council, has filed a resolution on the said concern.

Earlier, Mayor Michael Rama ordered the CCTO to remove the “no parking” signages around the vicinity of Basilica Minore del Santo Niño effective Tuesday, Jan. 16.

The “no collection of parking fees,” and “no clamping” had been suspended at the moment. This in particular covers the nearest streets of the Basilica including the stretch of Manalili down to Carbon Market, Jakosalem, Quezon Boulevard, MJ Cuenco in front of the Plaza Independencia, and Legazpi extension.

Penalty for clamped vehicles is at P1,500 while the towed ones is at P2,500. -