• Download St. Petersburg's parking plan (PDF)

ST. PETERSBURG -- Police and city officials have reported fielding calls from angry baseball fans who had their vehicles towed from private parking lots around Tropicana Field during the postseason.

The alleged scams, according to police spokesman Bill Proffitt, goes like this: Patrons find someone with a handmade sign advertising parking spots in exchange for cash in a private lot. After the game, they find that their vehicles are gone and someone duped them into parking in a tow zone.

Police report no arrests but enough complaints to warn the World Series-going public.

"These people who hold up these cardboards signs are really committing a theft," Proffitt said. "You give them a few bucks and you never see them again."

The Rays' success has resulted in a stampede of new permits for temporary parking lots but no requirement that those new lots erect the proper signs. Twenty of the 44 city-approved temporary parking lots were approved after the All-Star Break, said city planner Robert Gerdes.

So what's a baseball fan to do?

* Watch out for tow zone signs when you park in private lots.

* To really be sure, ask the vendor for the letter of approval from the city.

* Check out the map above before you go to the game.

Jamal Thalji, Times Staff Writer

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