RED BANK — Two Borough Council members joined business owners and residents of the borough’s west side in opposing a plan to install parking pay stations on several streets.
An ordinance introduced Feb. 25 would authorize the installation of pay stations on several borough roads, including Monmouth Street and Bridge Avenue. The Borough Council is scheduled to vote on adopting the ordinance at its March 11 meeting.
Councilman Edward Zipprich and Councilwoman Cindy Burnham voted against its introduction.
Zipprich had signaled support for the project during a Jan. 28 vote to authorize $135,308 in funding for the pay stations. However, he said the testimony of local business owners convinced him that more communication is needed before moving forward.
“I listened to what the Monmouth Street business owners had to say, and it made me take pause,” Zipprich said in a Feb. 27 interview. “I think this topic needs to be discussed more in the community with both the merchants and the residents.”
Burnham reiterated her opposition to the pay stations, which she first made evident by voting against the authorization of funds for the units.
“I feel the end of Monmouth Street is struggling hard enough with the retailers,” she said. “I really think it’s going to kill retail at that end.”
The pay stations had not been purchased as of Feb. 27, according to Zipprich.
“I think we may have put the horse before the cart in authorizing the purchase before restructuring the ordinance,” he said.
David Prown, owner of Prown’s Home Improvements on Monmouth Street, said he feels left out of the loop during the decisionmaking process and fears the meters would hurt businesses on the west side.
“My experience tells me that stuff like this is a done deal. You’ve readied the street, you’ve ordered the pay stations — maybe they’re already here — all done without the proper procedure or notification, at least for me as a business owner,” Prown said.
Stewart Goldstein, owner of Monmouth Meats on Monmouth Street, said he doesn’t think the two-hour parking limit is being enforced.
“I’m totally dumbfounded by the lack of parking on Monmouth Street. People park there all day long. I have a lot in back for maybe eight cars, shared by three different tenants,” he said. “Every day it’s a struggle.”
Suzzanne Viscomi, a resident of Bridge Avenue, said enforcing the two-hour limit would make the pay stations unnecessary.
“I am still against the parking meters, because I think there is a good way for you guys to collect money,” she said. “There are numerous times in that whole area that cars have no license plates … or sit there all day and never get ticketed.”
Resident Kate Triggiano agreed with the business owners, saying the pay stations would likely discourage potential patrons.
“These are all service-oriented shops. You run in and pick up something you had framed, you run into the bagel place to grab a bagel. … These are not places I want to pay a meter for,” Triggiano said.
She pointed to her mother, a Middletown resident, as an example of a potential visitor who avoids the borough because of parking fees.
“They’re the people we want to bring to our town to spend money,” Triggiano said. “And these are places that serve the people that live here. These are businesses that are useful to me on a daily basis.”
Business Administrator Stanley Sickels said the installation of the parking meters is intended to help solve the problem of a lack of turnover in parking spots.
“We’ve listened to the businesses and tried to make it more convenient, but the big thing is that it’s really to protect the businesses and make sure those on-street spaces exchange cars and rotate,” he said.
“This is part of a plan that was developed five or six years ago. We did a Monmouth Street streetscape improvement, which we discussed with the residents and the businesses publicly. It was funded by the borough, and it included pay stations … to encourage change and turnover of the spaces, because we have problems with people parking all day.”
Sickels said the electrical work for the pay stations was completed as part of the streetscape improvement project.
However, Prown said the current twohour limit on parking should be sufficient to ensure no one is parking for prolonged periods of time.
“You have it in place,” he said. “Enforce it.”