The city of Madison intends to increase the fees associated with a range of parking violations by $5 in the coming month to increase revenue for the city’s budget.

After being unanimously approved Monday by the Board of Estimates, the ordinance will go to city council next week for final approval.

“In the budget for 2010, there is a budgeted amount for increased parking ticket revenues,” said Rachel Strauch-Nelson, spokesperson for Mayor Dave Cieslewicz, said.

Ninety-three of the city’s 137 parking violations are expected to have their fees increased by $5 each. The necessity for the fee increase is attributed to the city’s Adopted Operating Budget calling for revenue increases of nearly $200,000.

According to Strauch-Nelson, the revenue from tickets in 2009 was approximately $5.3 million, while the budgeted revenue for 2010 is $5.5 million.

According to draft legislation of the ordinance, the majority of the violations that will have higher fees with this recent proposal are currently between $20 and $100.

Some of the augmented violations are specific to certain streets or neighborhoods, such as those at Law Park, Brittingham Boathouse and Gates of Heaven Synagogue, though most of the effected violations are not restricted.

“The fines being raised here are really random, and many of them have not been increased in several years,” Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said.

Strauch-Nelson said though the majority of the city’s parking rule violations are to see an increase, opposition to the proposed changes is not expected due to the relatively small amount added to each fee.

Verveer said the $200,000 increase had been budgeted since the current year’s budget approval last November.

However, it was only in the last few weeks that Cieslewicz had proposed the increase in parking violation fees to account for the budgeted revenues.

“Without this most recent proposal, there would have been a $200,000 hole in budgeted revenues,” Verveer said.

According to Strauch-Nelson, from 2006 to 2008, the average number of tickets issued annually was 165,389 tickets.

Strauch-Nelson added the majority of the violations that did not see an increase in fees were those that individuals had been strongly opposed to or were “most sensitive to.”

For instance, parking violations that most commonly affect students and residents in the campus area would not see an increase, Verveer said.

Among those violations are expired parking meters, alternate side parking and winter parking rules.

He added he was pleased to see that the new fees would not disproportionately affect downtown residents.

The decision not to increase the fees for alternate side parking may come as a relief to some, as 1,818 tickets were issued for winter parking violations in the first week of enforcement of alternate side parking rules.

Alternate side parking rules require residents to park on the odd-numbered address side of the street on odd-numbered days, and to park on the even side of the street on even-numbered days.

These restrictions are in effect until March 15, regardless of weather conditions.