Article Courtesy of MyPanhandle.com

By Maggie Solomon

Published December 1, 2016

WALTON COUNTY -- A Southport man is concerned about a parking ticket he found on his vehicle during a recent visit to South Walton.

"When you look at the wording, they try to word it in a way to make it look like it was issues by the Walton County Sheriff's Office," said Brandon Waldrip. "And, in fact it wasn't."
 

Waldrip said there were no signs warning him public parking was not allowed on Grayton Street in Seaside. He said it's not the cost that concerns him but who issued the citation in the first place. On the ticket, it says it's issued by the Seaside Town Council. The Council is the management administration for some homeowners within Seaside. "This is something that Seaside issues themselves," said Corey Dobridnia, the Public Affairs Coordinator with the Walton County Sheriff's Office. According to the Sheriff's Office, they rarely issue parking violations. Because the tickets aren't coming from the department, it has no impact on the recipient's driving records.

"It won't affect their license," said Dobridnia.

On the Seaside Town Council's Residential Parking Policy online, it states those who refuse to pay the fine could face civil claims court. With most of Seaside's roads being privately owned, Waldrip said it's an odd approach to curb parking within the community.

"This is just land owners issuing citations basically," said Waldrip.

His main concern is for out-of-town visitors who will just assume the ticket is from law enforcement.

"They've done all they can do to make it look like it was a legal document, but in reality, it's just a piece of paper," said Waldrip.

If people have questions about the validity of a ticket or citation they've received, the Sheriff's Office said to reach out to them for clarification.