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Atlanta World Cup brings illegal parking crackdown
Atlanta police are warning World Cup visitors that operating unpermitted parking lots or vending setups will result in citations or arrests, according to authorities.
ATLANTA - Atlanta police are warning visitors and residents to avoid unlicensed parking operations and unpermitted vendors across the city ahead of the World Cup.
Atlanta police enforcement operations
What we know:
The Atlanta Police Department is creating specialized police details to proactively identify, cite, and handle unlicensed operations during the soccer tournament.
Officers are tracking down pop-up parking lots, illegal food vendors, unpermitted merchandise sellers, and large unauthorized parties at local short-term rentals like Airbnbs.
Legitimate parking areas will display official signs, whereas fraudulent lots will completely lack proper signage.
Authorities stated that anyone selling a service or a product on public or private property in the city must hold a valid permit.
People caught running fake operations face immediate citation, while outright scammers face a police arrest. Officials recommend that people traveling to Midtown or downtown use rideshares or public transportation to avoid driving and parking entirely.
Future tournament developments
What we don't know:
Police have not yet confirmed the exact number of officers being deployed to these special event units or the specific cost of the citations for unpermitted business operations. It remains unclear exactly how many unauthorized parking lots or illegal vendors have been documented by the city ahead of the games.
Short-term rental parties
What's next:
Officers will expand their monitoring to look out for unpermitted large parties at area neighborhoods throughout the duration of the sporting event. Police officials are instructing residents to immediately dial 911 if they notice a spontaneous neighborhood gathering that is starting to get out of hand.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from Atlanta Police Department Field Operations Major Kristin Knight and Licenses and Permits Unit Lt. Craig Burrell, who explained how city permits operate and outlined police enforcement strategies during a pre-World Cup news conference earlier this week.