Region : Deadline for Parking Fines

People with five or more outstanding parking tickets in West Hollywood, Beverly Hills and Santa Monica have until March 1 to pay them or risk having their cars towed.

The three cities have combined their databases on outstanding parking tickets, and can determine whether scofflaws have violated parking ordinances in the neighboring communities.

The cities have instituted a grace period through Feb. 28 to allow people to pay their tickets without the normal penalties for lateness.

Turbo Data Systems Inc. of Tustin is coordinating the database system, which will allow parking officials to punch a license plate number into a hand-held ticket distributor and tell immediately if a scofflaw should be towed because of multiple or longstanding violations in the three cities.

“This way, the cities will be able to make the person pay all of them before he gets his car back,” Turbo Data Vice President Carlos Mendez said Wednesday. He said violators have been able to avoid towing by staggering their parking tickets among the three cities.