New Parking Meters

[tufsu1]

ok...this won't make you anti-mneter people happy....but...

They are installing new meters on Laura Street...the block between bay and the Laning are in now...they are solar powered meters that...wait for it....take credit cards!

Even more interesting, at 5:15pm today, it said FREE PARKING....guess the City is now admitting, through the meter programming, that enforcement ends at 5pm (not 6pm as the old meters say).

[Ocklawaha]

If we had any investigative journalists in this city besides MJ's volunteers this nonsense could eaisly be brought crashing down. I asked and found out that all of the meter revenue is only some $600 thousand a year... Add to this the parking enforcement cops, administration and capital costs of stupid shiny new meters and POOF the citizens would march these fools out of town on a rail.

Imagine what we lose each year in real dollars on this fiasco not to mention the probable dollars lost in vacant retail spaces - due in part to Neanderthal Parking concepts.


OCKLAWAHA

[strider]

The 600K, it that just the meters, or does it include the hefty fines? It is an amount that could be just meter revenue. Then add in the fines.

Actually, at least the new meters are an improvement.  As long as the enforcement of parking meters creates an revenue stream of any size, the best we can hope for, at least short term, is an improvement.

If they take credit cards, perhaps they could also be used to accept pre-charged parking passes that would at least make parking a bit easier. 

[CS Foltz]

I wonder what consulting firm came to this conclusion? City's idea's are so behind the times is is allmost funny! They wonder why downtown is a ghost town.......but parking appears to have never been added into the parking equation even at the landing!

[tufsu1]

I wonder what consulting firm came to this conclusion?

dude...enough!

[ChriswUfGator]

I wonder what consulting firm came to this conclusion?

dude...enough!

enough of what?

Enough bashing Tufsu's consulting firm, I'm assuming...lol

[Noone]

I'd like to know the legislation, ord. # for the meters. How many? What is the plan for future meters? I'm more curious how Metjax views this.

[CS Foltz]

Gentlemen..........I was not bashing any "Consulting Firm" with my reference. I do need to point out though, it would seem to me that the City can not pass gass without some consulting firm somewhere landing a contract to look at things. With all of the Departments that are under the City Umbrella, surely there is someone somewhere which could do the exact same thing? Why should we spend tax dollars, we don't have, for an answer that common sense or some study will give us. My point is, make do with what we have inhouse and IF we don't have it, then go to outside sources but only if!

[fieldafm]

[tufsu1]

I wonder what consulting firm came to this conclusion?

dude...enough!

enough of what?

Enough bashing Tufsu's consulting firm, I'm assuming...lol

hardly...urban planners and engineers aren't usually involved in parking meter installation

[Ocklawaha]

The 600K, it that just the meters, or does it include the hefty fines? It is an amount that could be just meter revenue. Then add in the fines.

Actually, at least the new meters are an improvement.  As long as the enforcement of parking meters creates an revenue stream of any size, the best we can hope for, at least short term, is an improvement.

Consider what the council can't seem to figure out, if we lose the meters completely, we will lose the 600k... which really doesn't pay for their function, but we KEEP PARKING ENFORCEMENT because 30min-3hour parking will still need policing.

All it does if we trash the meters is negate a huge negative and accentuate the remaining positive. It's win - win and there are no capital start up costs like buying new one-legged bandits.

OCKLAWAHA

[KuroiKetsunoHana]

pretty sure this is actually some new kind ov dalek.

[tufsu1]

I still don't get the 'enough' thing.  What is there enough of?

constantly bringing up consulting firms in a negative tone....I know this may seem hard to believe, but most consultants I know care deeply about their communities....and they're also taxpayers who spend much of their earnings in those communities.

[tufsu1]

Most planning/engineering consultant get paid for the hours we put in doing the job.

I'll be more than happy to let others take a shot at doing the necessary analyses, working with the review agencies, documenting the findngs, etc.