WELLINGTON, Fla. — A dispute over parking spaces at Village Park in Wellington is heading to court.
The Wellington Sports Academy is suing the village, claiming it breached their agreement by restricting access to parking spaces the academy says it is entitled to use. Village officials disagree with that interpretation.
WATCH: You can't park there
The parking lot between the Wellington Sports Academy and the Wellington Aquatics Center is at the center of the lawsuit.
In the 146-page complaint, the academy says its initial agreement with the village granted it an "easement for parking and access throughout the entirety of Village Park" — meaning all spaces across the entire Village Park.
The academy claims the village is in breach of that contract by limiting the spaces it can use during large events, pointing to the installation of "gates across the parking area between the Athletic Center and the Village's adjacent Aquatics Center" as evidence of that restriction.
Frequent aquatics center visitor Vladimir Susana, who comes about once a week, says the parking lot can already get crowded under normal conditions.
"Usually Fridays to come with our daughter to enjoy with enjoy the water park," Susana said.
"It gets really hectic, and almost dangerous to walk as well because everybody thinks for parking. You walk in with kids," Susana said.
Village Manager Jim Barnes says the village is committed to its partnership with the academy but disagrees with how the academy interprets their agreement. He says the issue arises specifically during major events, like tournaments, which often begin before the aquatics center opens.
"Under normal circumstances, if there wasn't a tournament, if if you were just attending, you could park anywhere," Barnes said.
"Essentially, leaving no parking remaining for the aquatic facility when it opens because there's always going to be more cars, more attendees for those tournaments than the number of spaces immediately adjacent to the building," Barnes said.
Barnes says staff use gates to manage parking and direct traffic during large tournaments.
While the dispute heads to court, Susana says both sides should find a way to work it out.
"Just be a little bit more lenient, be a little bit more human on the human side of things. Not too much legal," Susana said.
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