PARKING BOARD
MINUTES
APRIL 6, 2009
1. CALL TO ORDER 4:30 p.m. by Mr. Spatafore
. ROLL CALL Mr. Spatafore, Mr. Walsh, Mr. Caggiano, new Board member Ben Bouchard and Parking Director James Hacker.
2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Mr. Caggiano made a motion to approve the minutes of February 2, 2009. Mr. Walsh seconded the motion, all were in favor and the motion so carried.
3. REPORT OF BOARD MEMBERS
There were no reports from Board members.
4. VISITORS
City Councillor Arthur Sargent, Chair of the City Council Committee on Community & Economic Development Committee, stated that the sub-committee approved by a vote of 5-0 to raise the meter prices. It will be going to the full City Council on April 9th. Councillor Sargent stated that he received some suggestions from David Pelletier and told him that he would pass the suggestions on to the Parking Board. The suggestions are to better mark some of the meters with labels and to change meter enforcement from 8am-5pm to 9am-4pm.
Mr. Hacker stated that the other Committee members are Councillors Lovely, Pinto, Sosnowski and Ryan. He noted that David Pelletier’s suggestion on the meter labels was based on similar labels in either Lexington or Concord. He added that the meters at the Willows and at the Salem Green lots have labels. He did not feel that they offered any advantage and noted that they tend to peel off and require maintenance. He also added that he was not sure why Mr. Pelletier is recommending the change of meter enforcement hours and did not see any merit to the time change.
Mr. Caggiano asked if nickels and dimes can still be used when the meters are changed to .25 per half hour.
Mr. Hacker replied that some meters may not be able to accept them and that he will do an inventory. He noted that if the Council approves the meter fee change, it will likely take 4 to 5 weeks to order the new metal plates.
Mr. Caggiano suggested placing Mr. Pelletier’s suggestions on the next agenda for discussion.
5. INFORMATION & CORRESPONDENCE
Mr. Hacker provided a copy of the Salem Regional Visitor Center Statistics for 2003 to present and noted that for January 2009, visitors were down 10% from January 2008.
Mr. Hacker stated that the Mayor recently had an amnesty program for parking tickets, in which one can of food submitted with one late ticket would result in the waiving of the late fees and penalties. He stated that the program was very successful with $117,000 taken in during March.
Mr. Hacker stated that the Resident Sticker Parking Program has moved from the City Clerk’s Office to the Collector’s Office. Enforcement will be undertaken by the Parking Department. He provided copies of the public flyer. Mr. Hacker stated that the stickers will be different colors and will include the license plate number and an expiration date and will be numbered so as to coincide with a name and address. The fee for a sticker is $10 for two years. Visitor passes will be a hang tag for $1, maximum 2 per housing unit. The visitor pass will have a number tied to a name and address, along with an expiration date. The program will begin on April 15th for Zone F and for the first thirty days only warnings will be given out to those in
violation. Zones A and B begin on May 15th and Zones C, D and E begin on June 15th. Students will have to bring a license and registration, along with a letter from the school stating that they are a full-tie student.
Mr. Walsh suggested that students not be given visitor passes and that the Resident Sticker expire after one year.
Mr. Hacker suggested trying the program out for the summer and noted that if it needs tweaking, an ordinance change can be suggested.
Mr. Hacker stated that he has put out the bid request for the pay-by-space and pay/display units.
Mr. Hacker stated that they have been having problems with vandalism in the Museum Place Garage. Honda Civics and Accords parked over night are being targeted. He stated that the Salem Police are patrolling the garage more and that he has added an additional security person.
Mr. Hacker stated that the Parking Department and Public Services are participating in Clean Sweeps. Meter control staff will be leafleting cars the day before and ticketing violators on the day of.
Mr. Hacker stated that he plans to start the Salem Willows meters re-installation, activation and enforcement the week after Easter.
Mr. Hacker provided the revenue figures for the parking garages, parking lots, meters and office from July FY04 through March FY09. He noted that approximately $15,000 of garage funds was recorded in meters by Finance in February. He stated that an $18,000 deposit is not shown in March, but will show up next month. He noted that the numbers are down which he attributed to the jury pool being moved to Peabody, the Peabody Essex Museum closing on Mondays and the lower tourism numbers.
Mr. Hacker stated that the Mayor will be submitting to Council a request to move the oversight of bagging meters during construction project from Police to Parking and to add a daily fee.
Mr. Hacker stated that, at a recent meeting, Councillor Sosnowski stated that courthouse construction workers should not be parking on the grassy area created by the ramp from North to Bridge Street. Mr. Hacker stated that the city cannot issue tickets unless the Council passes something that declares parking there illegal. He noted that the Mayor’s Office is begun planning for the summer when there will be 150+ courthouse construction workers and that DCAM is looking for 200 spaces.
Councillor Sargent stated that workers should have to pay to park there.
Mr. Hacker stated that he had the information requested by Mr. Doggett at the last meeting regarding the lot size and ownership of the parcels of land fronting on the north side of Bridge Street from the overpass (Route 114) to the intersection of Flint Street. He suggested holding off on discussion until the next meeting when Mr. Doggett is present.
6. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
There was no unfinished business.
7. NEW BUSINESS
Mr. Spatafore welcomed new member Ben Bouchard.
8. DATE OF NEXT MEETING
The next meeting is scheduled for May 4, 2009.
9. ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business, Mr. Caggiano made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Walsh seconded the motion, all were in favor and the motion so carried. The meeting was adjourned at 5:24pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Jane A. Guy
Secretary
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