WPCNR COMMON COUNCIL CHRONICLE-EXAMINER. By John F. Bailey. August 5, 2004UPDATED 10:30 P.M. E.D.T. UPDATED With PIX 11:15 P.M. UPDATED August 9, 2004: The new Department of Parking hours and days enforcement standards lived just 36 days from when they first went into effect July 1, as the Common Council voted 7-0 to rollback hours of enforcement at on-street parking meters and parking lots from 9 A.M. to midnight back to 9 A.M. to 9 P.M. As part of the same ordinance, the Council voted to bring back free parking at on-street meters but not in parking lots on Sundays, something that was not explicitly pointed out by the Council and has just come to WPCNR’s attention. The council will discuss at a future date the possibilities of bringing the parking enforcement hour back to 6 P.M. in certain residential neighborhoods. Garages will continue to require payment on Sundays as they presently do.
GREAT MOMENTS IN COMMON COUNCIL HISTORY: AUGUST 5, 2004: Deputy City Clerk, Ann McPherson records the “YES” Votes of the Common Council Thursday at the moment of their passing the Traffic Ordinance rescinding hours parking will be enforced in the city, to 9 A.M to 9 P.M., Monday through Saturday, with Sundays free parking at all meters on the street , (a key distinction, meters in parking lots will still be enforced 9 AM to 9 PM on Sunday, according to the Department of Parking Monday), as Mayor Joseph Delfino (right), observes. Facing are Arnold Bernstein, Rita Malmud, Larry Delgado. At left, Robert Greer, Benjamin Boykin, Tom Roach. Photo by WPCNR News.
The decision to rollback the hours and reinstate free parking on Sundays at meters will cost the city $579,000 in anticipated revenue.
JUST A GAZILLION OVERLAYS: John Larson, Deputy Director of Parking, pinchhitting for Al Moroni, Director of Parking, who picked a good week to be on vacation, demonstrated the overlays to be applied to signs and stickers on present meters, which he said would take 15 days. Councilperson Rita Malmud opined that the stickers applied to meters announcing the hour limits in July caused confusion in that the copy that said parkers could park beyond the time limit after 6 P.M. was not big enough and were a mistake on the Department of Parking in the design of the sticker. The council did not voice any such complaints when the stickers were demonstrated to them this spring. Photo by WPCNR News.
John Larson, Deputy Director of Parking, said new stickers would be placed on city meters reflecting the new hours of enforcement within two weeks, and that new signs reflecting the enforcement hours could be in place in 45 days. Larson said the new signage and stickerage would cost $15,000.
Mayor Grumbles About Press Coverage
The Mayor said that the cash key was a means citizens could purchase to avoid quarter shortage. (You need quarters to feed the meters.) The Mayor went out of his way to criticise the press for not publishing the fact that parkers would not have “to leave their meal” to go out and feed the meter, because you could park beyond the posted meter limit after 6 P.M.
This is not true. WPCNR published photographs of the new stickers on this website, and wrote extensively on the ins and outs of the new parking rules on June 30, 2004. In addition, the city did not orchestrate the ushering in of the new rates and hours with any media blitz of their own. The city did not update its own website as late as July 19 with the new rates and rules, or even bulletins or alerts.
METERS ENFORCED 9 TO 9, SIX DAYS A WEEK EVERY STREET WITH METERS: Deputy Director of Parking Larson demonstrated a map showing the streets where all parking meters are located within the city. At issue is whether to cut the hours back from 9 P.M. to 6 P.M. in outlying neighborhoods. What was not made clear was that meters in parking lots will still require payment 9 to 9 on Sundays, which WPCNR learned Monday, August 9. Photo by WPCNR News
Mayor Joseph Delfino went along with the ordinance even though the city requested the new rates and hours from the defunct Parking Authority last spring, saying that the city needed increased revenue from meters and parking fees to meet an anticipated budget gap. Delfino said the rates were the Parking Authority proposal, and that he had hoped the city could give them a try, but he was willing to go along with the Council on rescinding the rates, not mentioning that the administration had requested the rate and hours increases originally.
Actually the Parking Authority came up with the increased hours and rates on request from the city.
Ironically, the Parking Authority originally proposed the hours be increased only from 9 AM to 9 P.M., and not midnight. The city pressed for extending the hours to midnight because they felt they needed it, and the Parking Authority went along with the city lead. The Parking Authority rates, hours and fee plans were developed by Executive Director of the Parking Authority Al Moroni and Mr. Larson.
Undocumented Calls Fold Council Like Cheap Suit.
Councilpersons said they had received many calls and complaints from residents and e-mails about the parking to midnight hours as well as Sundays, however no Councilperson said exactly how many complaints they actually received.
Council President Tom Roach told WPCNR privately upon being pressed that he had received 20 to 25 calls. Roach said that ministers of the city’s congregations had approached the Council as far back as June complaining about the decision to collect parking meter fees on Sundays, saying it would hurt their churchgoers.
WPCNR asked Mr. Roach when exactly the movement to roll hours back began. Roach said he did not remember “that it was before Larry (Delgado) came on the Council.” Asked if it was about 2-1/2 weeks ago, (July 19) Roach said yes, that was about the time. Roach said the calls he received were the most he received on any issue other than New York Presbyterian Hospital.
Ordinance Crafted Thursday Morning.
Apparently, since city hall claimed no knowledge of Thursday afternoon’s meeting as of 9:15 Thursday morning, the ordinance was written by the legal department Thursday morning and was whisked out by fax by 11 A.M. The legal department said the ordinance was written Thursday morning.
Taxes the Answer?
Upon leaving the meeting after the vote was taken, WPCNR asked Councilman Robert Greer how the city was going to make up the $579,000 shortfall. Greer said “I don’t know, we can always raise taxes.”
To make up $579,000 of revenue, the city would have to raise taxes 2%.
Greer also raised the possibility of the Department of Parking studying the possibility of lowering the hours to 8 P.M. in some areas of the city and back to 6 P.M. in outlying districts. Larson said it was difficult because the city does not have a lot of data so far. “We have some data based on our new collections, but not a lot,” Larson explained.
Department of Parking Fails Political Test.
WPCNR recalls that arguments by citizens raised against dissolving the Parking Authority publicly and on this website pointed out that by having the Parking Authority make parking decisions prevented parking fees and hours becoming politicized.
Within five weeks, the Common Council has shown that when it is responsible for setting fees and hours, “the court of last resort,” it can be swayed by phone calls and letters from perhaps as few as 25 people per councilperson to rescind proposals they reviewed for about four months, from April through June, especially when they are up for election in 14 months. (Mr. Roach, Mr. Delgado, Ms. Malmud, and Mayor Delfino will be up for election in November, 2005.)
CLOSEUP OF METERED STREETS IN WHITE PLAINS NOW ENFORCEABLE 9 A.M. TO 9 P.M. Monday through Saturday. Photo by WPCNR News
