Cars ticketed in Colorado Springs after holiday confusion

Downtown drivers who didn’t feed the meters on Monday because of the holiday found out through parking tickets that Columbus Day is not recognized as a city holiday.

City Parking Administrator Greg Warnke said, “Columbus Day is not a city holiday; it’s a federal holiday, so city employees had to work yesterday. Parking enforcement is part of the city so they were out doing their jobs.”

Chuck Sammon received a ticket Monday but remembers why he didn’t pay.

“We came up to the meter, we looked right in front and it said, ‘Except Sundays and holidays.” We said, ‘Great its free today,'” said Sammon.

The city said that Columbus Day has not been a city holiday in over a decade.

Sammon took the ticket to the court referee and the $20 fine was dropped.

Warnke said the city has no plans on changing the city-recognized holidays.