Portland residents are getting the message -- after the City Council passed a ban on using duct tape and spray paint to save spots for Rose Festival parades, staffers were out Thursday morning checking for tape.

They only found one section, on SW Fourth Avenue downtown.

“We’re finding absolutely nothing,” said Ross Turkus of the city’s Department of Development Services. “There’s a little bit of markings from last year, some paint, and tiny bits of paint imbedded in the pavement.”

Background: Duct tapers could get $500 fine

Turkus and three city employees walked along Martin Luther King Boulevard and across the river into downtown. They did find one taped off section on Fourth Avenue, but that’s it.

“It means they’ve learned the rules of the ordinance,” Turkus said.

The City Council passed the ordinance that allows parade goers to show up at 12:01 a.m. the before the parade. Those caught taping a section before that time are subject to a $500 find, but staffers say they’ve issued no citations so far.