By Victoria Hurley-Schubert, Staff Writer
For some extra holiday cheer this holiday season, the Princeton Merchants Association (PMA) and Princeton Borough are giving visitors free parking on Sundays in the downtown areas of Princeton.
The parking promotion directly helps local businesses by encouraging people to come downtown and indirectly improves the overall experience of shopping local, said Mark Censits, president of PMA.
Last year’s program for free meters in the central business district was a success, so the PMA decided to run the program again this year, he said.
”It definitely created good will towards the town and merchants,” said Mr. Censits. “It’s hard to know for sure if it made a difference economically, but we believe it encouraged residents and visitors to spend more time in downtown. Shoppers were more relaxed, spending more time browsing, munching communing and (free parking) just creates a better downtown holiday scene.”
A typical Sunday parking revenue is about $1,000, said Robert Bruschi, business admin- istrator of Princeton Borough.
”(Sundays are) usually a lot of visitors. It’s a great marketing effort and being able to advertise everything Princeton has to offer,” he said. “If we can play a role in that, it’s a good thing.”
The PMA saved the borough the expense of hanging wreaths this year by moving toward more events for holiday cheer, said Mr. Censits. The cost for decorations has been $2,000 to $6,000 and the borough supplied the manpower to put up the decorations, costing about $4,000 to $5,000 he said.
The labor savings will make up what the meters won’t be bringing in.
”It’s an offset; we usually spend money putting up the wreaths and decorations in the downtown,” said Mr. Bruschi. “There’s a little less in decoration, but a little more practical in the eyes of the merchants, and it goes way back to the 1990s when there were free parking days.”
Instead of decor, the PMA is looking at other ways to keep shoppers in the holiday spirit.
”We’re focusing on events and activities versus decorations,” said Mr. Censits. “The wreaths and flags that were put up last year only helped the central borough merchants and now that the PMA includes the township it’s not fair to just decorate the downtown.”
Activities include carolers, carriage rides and other holiday surprises.
