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Enforcement of the first residential parking permit zone in Grand Rapids will start Wednesday, Oct. 15. The city permit on the right will be required to park on several streets in the Belknap Lookout neighborhood north of I-196.

(Matt Vande Bunte | MLive.com)

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Enforcement of the city’s first residential parking permit zone will begin this month.

Signs have been installed on several streets in the Belknap Lookout neighborhood north of I-196 to notify motorists that a permit is required for on-street parking from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.

Grand Rapids on Wednesday, Oct. 15, will start ticketing parked cars that don’t have a permit.

Until then, the city will put “friendly tickets” on vehicles in violation of the new permit rules, said Eileen Pierce, a project manager in the city’s parking department.

“It’s more like a notice,” she said. “Anybody that does not have a permit on their car will get one of these notices so they will know that it’s not a good idea to park there.

“Oct. 15 is the real enforcement date.”

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Few cars parked on the street last week appeared to have a permit. The city so far has sold 43 residential permits that cost $15 for six months and 50 guest permits that cost $2 per day, Pierce said.

The fine for parking on the street without a permit is $20.

Currently, on-street parking is free to anyone and any motorist has as much right to a spot as does a resident who lives on the street. That frustrates the Neighbors of Belknap Lookout, who long have voiced frustration about Medical Mile students and employees taking up on-street spots, particularly from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.

Hence, the new permit program. Commuters can get a permit for $70 per month.

Here's a map of the permit zone, and the list of included streets:

• Fairview Avenue NE between Fairbanks and Hastings streets

• Livingston Avenue NE between Fairbanks and Hastings streets

• Coit Avenue NE between Fairbanks and Hastings streets

• Clancy Avenue NE between Fairbanks and Hastings streets

• Hastings Street NE between Fairview and Clancy avenues

• Trowbridge Street NE between Fairview and Clancy avenues

Pierce said the city had planned to begin enforcement Monday, Oct. 6, but there was a delay in getting the signs installed. City policy requires a 10-day grace period after the signs go up, so the enforcement date was pushed back.

Matt Vande Bunte covers government for MLive/Grand Rapids Press. Email him at mvandebu@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter and Facebook.