Orange cones spanning the Fills will remain in place following a lengthy conversation among Islamorada council members on whether to remove them and rely on no-parking signs.
Councilman Mark Gregg took a moment during a recent village council meeting to hear out Vice Mayor Henry Rosenthal’s desire for months to remove the barricades situated along the Fills. Initially set up to keep vehicles from parking all over the place, Rosenthal said he’s received phone calls from those who want the cones gone.
“First of all when you travel down the Fills, for the most part there’s no illegal parking,” Rosenthal said.
No-parking signs with a $200 fine are placed throughout the area. Not only does Rosenthal want more no-parking signs, but he also proposed adding a “meter maid” to write tickets to parking violators.
“I wanted to get rid of those cones and tape. That’s a very poor representation of this city,” Rosenthal said. “With the proper enforcement, it can be done. I want to clean it up and make it look like something.”
Discussions regarding the Fills date back many years, as several councils tussled with a solution. Last month, the council heard A.J. Engelmeyer, public works director, discuss a plan for the three islands connecting Upper and Lower Matecumbe keys. Among the proposals were guardrails, delineated parking with deceleration lanes and kayak launches.
Islamorada received a sublease from Florida Department of Transportation and Department of Environmental Protection in 2019 to manage the property on the Fills. It came following outcry about cars parked all over the place, littering and safety concerns, particularly during weekends and holidays. The Fills include Tea Table Relief, Indian and Lignumvitae keys.
Four village staff members in vehicles watch the three islands that make up the Fills during weekends for cars parking in wrong areas. Engelmeyer said the number of motorists his staff runs out is “astronomical.”
“There’s a lead guy to check the other crew mates. They’re sitting in zones where people constantly are parking. They’re in vehicles running cars off,” he said.
In 2019-2020, the village spent $112,000 on maintaining the Fills. That amount to maintain and manage the area rose to $281,000 in 2020-21. This year, the village has spent $133,000.
By removing the cones, Gregg said it would create more demand for enforcement than what’s there now. He also referenced an email sent to village officials and law enforcement regarding a resident’s complaint at Robbie’s over parking on the right of way. Sheriff Rick Ramsay responded to the email by citing the village’s parking statute that essentially allows parking on the right of way, so long as it doesn’t create a safety hazard.
“The right of way includes the Fills,” he said. “If someone wants to park in the right of way that doesn’t block the bike path or obstruct traffic, then it’s not illegal parking and we can’t write them a ticket. That’s a concern to me,” Gregg said.
Those issued parking tickets at the Fills aren’t always paying them, either, Gregg said. And there’s no enforcement mechanism.
“We don’t take them to court. We don’t have a collection agency that hounds them for payment. It’s just a pile,” Gregg said.
Councilman David Webb said people will show up — and issues once seen at the Fills will come back — if the cones and tapes come down at the Fills. Webb said the sheriff’s office recommended against taking down the barriers. That was confirmed by Capt. Derek Paul.
“It’s manageable right now. The cones are working,” he said. “When a deputy is driving through, or myself, not a day goes by that we don’t pull over and tell them they have to move. I don’t write them a ticket for it, they get in their car and move. Ninety-five percent of the time they say ‘sorry’ and leave.”
