![\"Tremont](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/IMG_Towingel_1_2_1_HE2MV5UK.JPG\" "\\"Tremont")
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Tremont Towing is one of two towing companies that operates in Miami Beach.<\/p>\n
Miami Herald Archives<\/p>\n
If you live in Miami Beach and park in a residential zone without the proper permit, your car may be towed. If you park in front of a yellow curb, or in a spot designated for motorcycles, you may meet a similar fate.<\/p>\n
But that could soon change. A resolution<\/a> on the agenda for Wednesday\u2019s City Commission meeting calls for the city to eliminate towing for city residents parked on public property in most cases, except for safety reasons.<\/p>\n The item\u2019s sponsor, Commissioner Alex Fernandez, is directing the city administration to draw up a detailed plan and already has the support of five fellow commissioners who are listed as co-sponsors.<\/p>\n The idea, Fernandez told the Miami Herald, is to end the type of resident towing that\u2019s done for the sole purpose of \u201ccompliance.\u201d<\/p>\n Parking illegally in a residential zone, for example, would land you with a ticket, but not a tow. Blocking a fire hydrant or parking in a loading zone, on the other hand, could still be a tow-worthy offense.<\/p>\n Out of nearly 1,000 tows of city residents on public property so far this year, about 64% were for non-safety violations, Fernandez said.<\/p>\n \u201cTowing should be a mechanism to serve the public, not to hurt the people,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is the number one complaint that we get from our residents, and we can solve it very easily by ending this inconvenience that not only affects residents\u2019 quality of life but is a big financial burden.\u201d<\/p>\n Getting your car back after it\u2019s towed in Miami Beach can cost around $500<\/a>, according to information posted<\/a> by the city. There\u2019s a $274 towing rate for most vehicles, a $150 administrative fee, a $33 fee that goes to the city and a $45 charge for outside storage beyond six hours.<\/p>\n Miami Beach residents can pay a discounted towing rate of $150 and have the administrative fee waived if they show a driver\u2019s license and registration at a valid city address.<\/p>\n Residents have made up about 17% of all tows in Miami Beach so far in 2026, Fernandez said.<\/p>\n His proposal would supplement a program he championed last year to have the city send residents a text message<\/a> after they get a citation but before their car is towed, giving them time to get back to the car before it\u2019s hauled away.<\/p>\n From May 2025 through March 2026, nearly 2,800 such alerts have been sent to residents, Fernandez said, and just over 400 vehicles have ended up being towed, or about 15%.<\/p>\n In order to receive the text alerts, Miami Beach residents need to register in the city\u2019s parking system<\/a>, which also grants them a $1 per hour metered parking rate citywide. The changes Fernandez is now proposing would likely work the same way, he said, requiring registration in order to be exempt from towing in most cases.<\/p>\n Fernandez said the broad support for his proposal among his commission colleagues runs counter to public narratives about tow companies wielding undue influence in Miami Beach.<\/p>\n \u201cTo me, their position on this is irrelevant,\u201d Fernandez said when asked where the companies stand. \u201cI\u2019m elected by the residents. At the end of the day, public parking spaces belong to the residents and the taxpayers of Miami Beach, and we need to make these as accessible to our residents as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n Ralph Andrade, a representative for the two towing companies that operate in Miami Beach \u2014 Tremont Towing and Beach Towing \u2014 did not respond to a request for comment about Fernandez\u2019s proposal.<\/p>\n If Fernandez\u2019s resolution is approved Wednesday, the city administration would then present a plan to the commission\u2019s Public Safety and Neighborhood Quality of Life subcommittee in May. The plan would need to return to the full commission for approval.<\/p>\n Fernandez said the plan the city administration develops could include time limits for residents to move their cars, even if they are initially spared from being towed.<\/p>\n Miami Beach United, a resident advocacy group, said<\/a> it supports the resolution as \u201canother step in eliminating predatory towing practices\u201d but suggested that \u201cno-tow exceptions be limited to violations that do not extend past 24 hours.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to seeking a decrease in resident towing, Fernandez\u2019s resolution calls for beefing up enforcement via citations in resident zones and freight loading zones \u201cto ensure compliance and reduce illegal parking.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Commissioner](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/MIA_MiamiBeachspringbreakpresserAGS072.JPG\" "\\"MIA_MiamiBeachspringbreakpresserAGS072.JPG\\"")
Commissioner Alex Fernandez talks about spring break at a press conference on Feb. 24, 2026, at Miami Beach police headquarters. Alie Skowronski askowronski@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n