SALEM — Lots of delinquent drivers redeemed themselves last month by paying off their overdue parking tickets and donating canned foods to a local food pantry.
The city's parking amnesty program — an attempt to close a midyear budget gap and put a dent in the long list of drivers with unpaid tickets — raised $28,333 last month and filled at least one truck full of food for St. Joseph Food Pantry.
"It was amazing," said pantry director Veann Campbell. "I can't believe that many people had parking tickets."
At the beginning of March, city officials estimated that unpaid parking tickets and subsequent late fees added up to more than $1.25 million. The city maintains a list of parking-ticket scofflaws that stretches 37 pages.
Many owe hundreds or even thousands of dollars in fines and late fees and, in many cases, have accumulated dozens of unpaid parking tickets.
For the entire month of March, the city waived the late fees tacked onto the tickets, as long as the scofflaw agreed to pay the original fine and bring in two canned food items per ticket.
Some of the $28,333 raised was the result of an agreement reached with local car rental agencies whose cars were linked to overdue tickets.
Campbell said volunteers had to make more than one trip to City Hall to pick up all the food last week. But because of high demand at the pantry, most of it had already been handed out by yesterday.
"This was exciting," Campbell said. "I wish they could do it every week."
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