Punta Gorda may impound bikes

PUNTA GORDA — Punta Gorda City Council is considering impounding bikes chained for 24 hours or longer in public areas.

Owners would pay a $25 fine to get the bicycle back.

The City Council gave initial approval on a proposed city ordinance — and must give it a second approval in an upcoming meeting for it to go into effect.

Council members Bill Dryburgh and Debi Lux dissented in the 3-2 vote.

The Council asked staff to look into the cost to add more bike racks in the city.

The City Council ironed out some details, including a concern from City Attorney David Levin. He asked about fining an unknown owner. He said a warning would be affixed to the bike. Then, after 24 hours, the bike could be impounded.

Mayor Lynne Matthews asked how an ordinance would be enforced and could the city “actually collect on the fine.”

Punta Gorda Police Chief Pam Smith said some bicycles do have serial numbers. However, she said, most people don’t register bikes with the police department or city.

“We have to do something because we have people just randomly parking their bicycles everywhere at city parks and it’s causing a problem — and it’s also very ugly,” Matthews said.

Matthews asked what happens if it’s a windy day and the warning blows off the bike and it’s impounded.

“That to me is not acceptable,” she said. “I understand we have a problem and we have to have an ordinance that’s enforceable. I’m just concerned about things like that.”

She noted they don’t know who is receiving the citation due to the fact there is no “proof of ownership” like they would have with a car’s license plate.

City Manager Greg Murray said owners will likely want their bikes back.

“We can remove the bicycle and impound it,” Murray said. “If someone wants their $500 electric bike back and they have a $25 fine fee and we’ve impounded it, they will either contact us or we will be donating it to volunteers to ride the Harborwalk.”

Smith said the city could develop a sticker for bikes that wouldn’t blow away.

“We generally don’t have luck finding the owners, but we’ll find them when we impound them,” Smith said.

Levin said it’s good to know the bike owner, especially if they are a “repeat violator.”

Council Member Melissa Lockhart called the proposed ordinance a deterrent for people who leave their bikes chained in public places for days. She said she recently counted eight bikes chained to decorative lamp posts and bushes by the boat club.

“It looked very messy,” she said. “The difference between this and other issues when we have is we can take the bike. There’s a process — throw a sticker on it and if they don’t come back, you cut the chain and you take the bike. It’s a deterrent. I think it’s going to pretty our city.”

Council member Debi Lux said she grew up riding her bike and connecting them to trees. She didn’t see the need for more bike racks.

“How many bike racks are we going to have?” she asked. “I understand we don’t want the bikes on our pathways or anything like that, but we are a walkable, bikeable city and now we are putting up all of these restrictions on our walkable bikeable city.”

Matthews disagreed, calling it a “major issue.”

Smith said she went to areas where bike riders gather and said the police would be enforcing a ban on chaining bikes on public property.

“They are not really listening to the advice,” Smith said.

Council Member Donna Peterman asked if there’s bike racks, could a person chain a bike for several days?

“I don’t think having a ton of bike racks is aesthetically pleasing either,” she said.

Dryburgh had issues.

“I think there is a little bit of an overkill,” Dryburgh said. “I don’t feel warm and fuzzy about this one.”

After the meeting, Dryburgh said he has concerns about due process and other issues.

“What happens if someone who doesn’t own a bike complains to the police that it’s chained up?” he asked. “Then the person goes to the police department and pays the $25 fine and claims the $500 electric bike as their own?”

He said people chain bicycles so they can walk Harborwalk and other areas.

“It’s not a big deal...What happens if we collect 100 bikes? Does the police department have enough storage space?” he asked.