Parking rates going up

From Sunnyside Post:

The cost of a metered parking spot is going up throughout New York City—with Queens to be hit with the increase starting Nov. 1

The new rates will see the cost of metered parking spaces in the commercial districts of Astoria, Long Island City, Sunnyside, Woodside, Jackson Heights and Forest Hills go up from $1 per hour to $1.50. In downtown Flushing the cost will be hiked from $1 to $2 per hour.

Outside traditional commercial districts in Queens, the cost will go up from $1.00 per hour to $1.25.

The DOT in announcing the roll out, which starts in Brooklyn Sept. 4, said that this will be the first time since 2013 that rates are going up.

Parking meters hiked and BDB is fine with it

From CBS 2:

Mayor Bill de Blasio is looking to raise parking meter rates — a move that could burden outer borough businesses and working people.

His plan includes raising the rates at the nearly 70 percent of the spots in the outer boroughs that now charge $1 an hour.

CBS2’s Political Reporter Marcia Kramer asked the mayor on Friday whether he feels “that working people who may use those spots… could be unfairly disadvantaged and it could be a regressive tax?”

“You know I care a lot about making sure there’s fairness for working people,” he replied.

De Blasio said that while he cares about the working man, he’s more concerned about congestion. To ease congestion, he wants to see more turnover of parking spots in outer borough business districts, like Astoria, Queens.

Does this make any sense whatsoever?

Green taxis hogging up parking in Astoria

From WPIX:

What’s going on is a turf battle for parking spaces that are on the public streets. The taxis want the spaces so they can get the customers coming off the subway. But the businesses say they need these spaces for their customers.

“This has become a free taxi stand”, says Alfred Hansen, the manager of Grand Wine and Liquors. The green cabs line up outside his store next to the 30th street N and Q subway stop and park up and down the block, where it’s one hour meter parking. Hansen says the green taxis often don’t pay the meter and take up the spaces customers need to park and shop.

I spoke with a number of green taxi owners who say they usually pay the meter, but when I checked, very few had any receipts on their dashboards. The drivers insist they do pay and say they have a right to these public spaces, as any other vehicles has.

But some of the local businesses say the green cabs are monopolizing the spaces. When one pulls away with a fare, another is waiting to take its place. The manager of the local supermarket says “ there’s no parking. It’s very congested here. It’s not fair to the customers who want to shop.

You'll probably still be overcharged for parking

From the Daily News:

A proposal to spare drivers extra charges if their time on a meter runs out shortly before parking regulations expire for the day is a nice idea, Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg told the City Council on Wednesday.

The city has 10 million reasons why it can’t give motorists a break on parking meter charges.

A proposal to spare drivers extra charges if their time on a meter runs out shortly before parking regulations expire for the day is a nice idea, Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg told the City Council on Wednesday.

But she said it would cost the city big bucks.

“While I sympathize with motorists who may be overpaying at our meters, this bill raises serious financial and technical challenges,” Trottenberg said — adding that the city could lose $8 million a year in parking revenue, plus $2 million to reprogram the meters.

Currently, drivers have to pay for an entire 15-minute increment, even if there are only a couple of minutes left until parking regulations end. Parking costs 25 cents for every 15 minutes at most outer-borough meters, and more in central Manhattan.

Under the bill, a driver who parked at 6:39, for instance, and paid for 15 minutes would have meter time extended until regulations end at 7, instead of having to drop in another quarter for the last six minutes.

CitiBike owes a $1M parking fee

From the Wall Street Journal:

The operator of New York City's bicycle-sharing program faces another hurdle as it tries to find a successful financial formula for the popular program—the city wants it to pay up for lost parking revenue.

A little-noticed provision of a contract with Citi Bike's operator, Alta Bicycle Share Inc., requires the company to reimburse the city for parking revenue, since some of the docking stations for the system's bikes take up former parking spots.

The city says Alta owes about $1 million in lost revenue through 2013, according to people familiar with the matter.

Alta, a Portland, Ore.-based company that runs Citi Bike through its subsidiary NYC Bike Share, has been in negotiations with New York City transportation officials and an outside investor, REQX Ventures, whose capital infusion would fuel an expansion of the program.

REQX Ventures and Alta have been seeking to remove the parking-revenue provision from the Citi Bike operator's contract with the city, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Parking revenue has emerged as a bargaining chip in the negotiations, but it is unclear whether the city would let Alta off the hook and remove the requirement in a reworked contract.

DOT workers have nothing but time

Another from my inbox:

On April 7th, we posted a story on QC about deBlasio's, Liz Crowleys, and Community Board 5's inability or unwillingness to implement a one way conversion of 70 Street in Maspeth to a one way northbound that was recommended over 2 years ago !!!

SO MUCH FOR dE BLASIO'S VISION ZERO PLAN

One of the stories we have gotten from the NYC DOT is that this is a budgetary concern. BULLS&#%!!! We are talking about 6 or 7 corners - Not all of Maspeth, NOT all of Queens and NOT all of NYC.

GOOD NEWS!!! (FOR US...NOT THE AFOREMENTIONED POLITICIANS OR THE DOT)

We have found the money !!!!


Take a look at the pictures of some of the dozen plus DOT trucks parked illegally along Grand Ave in Maspeth (above) while the workers are enjoying breakfast at 8:30.....truly an hour and an a half after their shift starts. THIS IS EVERYDAY !!!!

Look a little further, and notice the trucks parked around Juniper Park. These pictures were taken at 2:30 to 3 PM one recent afternoon. The workers were enjoying the sunshine waiting for their shift to end. This is less than 1/2 mile from Crowley's office....duh !!! Notice the meter maintenance truck. There are no meters within a mile of this location.

We have redacted the vehicle and plate #' s as it is not and was never our intention to get the workers into trouble, but rather to draw attention to the lies and stories we are being told.

There are enough man hours wasted here, that this conversion could be done on a daily basis !!!

Easier parking coming to Astoria, Jackson Heights & Lindenwood

From the Queens Courier:

Vernon Boulevard’s bike lanes are set to get a makeover this summer to provide extra safety for riders and more space for drivers.

According to a plan the Department of Transportation (DOT) presented to Community Board 2 on June 6, the two one-way bike paths on each side of Vernon Boulevard would become a two-way protected lane. The lane would have a five-foot buffer running alongside the west side of the street. The lanes would also be painted green to provide easier visibility.

The existing bike lanes were set up as part of the Queens East River Greenway in 2008, which connects the waterfront from Hallet’s Cove in Astoria to 45th Road in Hunters Point.

After hearing community concerns over the lack of parking, DOT also plans to create a protected bike path through Rainey Park in Astoria. That would free up 35 parking spaces between 34th Avenue and 33rd Road.

From the Queens Gazette:

PARK Smart is an innovative parking management program that will help make it easier to find a parking spot and reduce congestion and double parking. The community and city Department of Transportation developed the Jackson Heights PARK Smart plan together as part of the Jackson Heights Neighborhood Transportation Study.

PARK Smart aims to increase the number of available parking spaces by encouraging motorists to park only as long as necessary. Parking rates in certain parts of the neighborhood will increase as motorists are parked longer. In other areas, a value rate will allow longer parking at the current rate.

The Progressive Rate encourages short stays, while providing more time for those who need it, on 37th Avenue, 74th Street, 82nd Street, and Broadway.

The Value Rate provides a low-cost, two-hour option for parking in lower demand areas. The Value Rate will be in effect on Roosevelt Avenue (from Broadway to 82nd Street) and 37th Road (74th to 75th Streets).

Meters on 74th Street will be extended to turn off at 10 p.m.

The meters on 74th Street and on Roosevelt Avenue will be converted from a one-hour limit to a two-hour limit.

From the Forum:

While Community Board 10 members said at their meeting last week they are pleased the city Department of Transportation is looking into additional parking for the congested 156th Avenue between 77th and 78th streets in Lindenwood, they voted to have DOT officials to take a closer look at their proposal.

Residents who spoke at last Thursday’s meeting said they supported the city’s plan to make parking less of a headache in the area, but asked that the DOT implement parallel parking spots along the north side and angled spots on the south of 156th Avenue. Al Silvestri, a DOT representative who attended the meeting, said the city has proposed doing the opposite – placing parallel parking along the south side and angled spots along the north.

The city first began looking into creating additional spots – meant to alleviate severe parking problems that residents said they have dealt with for far too long – following a request from the office of Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park).

CB 10 members pointed out that the angled parking proposed by the city would be on the same side as residences’ driveways, which they argued could create a logistical nightmare for drivers trying to exit their homes.

“That side of the street has cars that are pulling out,” said CB 10 member Joann Ariola. “You really need to take a look at flipping it and putting angled parking on the other side. That would be much safer.”

Silvestri said his department would review board members’ suggestions.

A bill also passed this Wednesday that should help with parking meters:

City app for finding parking spaces & paying meters

From CBS New York:

Mayor Michael Bloomberg unveiled a pilot program Tuesday that will allow drivers to add parking time remotely by using a smartphone app, the internet or by telephone.

Motorists will also receive a text message or email alerting them their time is about to expire. They will then be able to purchase additional time and extend their parking periods.

Drivers will also be able to spend less time hunting for a parking space with the city’s new real-time curbside parking availability map that can be viewed on the Internet, smartphones and tablet devices.

Parking problem on Roosevelt Avenue

From the Daily News:

Woodside merchants are urging the city to lift a weekday parking restriction on Roosevelt Ave. because they say it’s unnecessary and bad for business.

Donovan’s Pub owners launched a petition this week appealing a 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. “No Parking” regulation on Roosevelt Ave. between 51st and 59th streets.

“It has a really negative impact on our business and others along the avenue,” pub co-owner Dan Connor, 45, said of the regulation.

“It’s metered parking all day except those three hours and not everyone knows that,” Connor said. “There are no traffic issues here that we would need the zone.”

Connor and his business partner, James Jacobson, took over the bar on Dec. 28 and said they will be recruiting fellow merchants in their petition.

Donald Zarchy, 58, who owns Zarchy Pharmacy, across the street from the pub, said he would sign the petition.

“People come in for prescriptions and then have their cars towed,” he said. “Some have no idea it’s a tow-away zone. It’s been a problem for a long time. It’s just to get revenue for the city but I don’t think it’s necessary.”

A spokesman for the city Department of Transportation said the agency would be unlikely to change the rules.

More budget cuts are coming

From the NY Times:

With his plan to sell 2,000 new yellow-taxi medallions still in doubt, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg has proposed slashing money for libraries and after-school programs and increasing fees on school lunches and parking meters to compensate for more than $600 million in lost medallion revenue.

Mr. Bloomberg’s budget proposal does not reflect additional costs related to Hurricane Sandy, disaster relief or the storm’s effect on the local economy. Yet the storm will no doubt loom large when the mayor releases his budget plan in January or February for the 2014 fiscal year.

Instead, the new proposal — which, in an unusual move, was posted to the city’s Web site late Friday night but not announced until Sunday — represents a contingency plan to cope with a budget shortfall that must be addressed before the end of the fiscal year, on June 30.

Among other proposals, the Bloomberg administration plans to increase school-lunch fees to $2.50 from $1.50, bringing in $4.4 million. The administration plans to establish new parking meter areas in Lower Manhattan, while installing 428 new multi-space parking meters, to gain an extra $2.2 million.

But libraries across the city are slated to lose $8.3 million.

Sunnyside parking meters stealing time

DOT doesn't pay to park

From the Queens Chronicle:

Do as I say...but not as I do. That’s the message many residents claim they get from the city when it comes to things like fixing broken sidewalks (your responsibility — expect a ticket) vs. fixing broken curbs (the city’s job, and the wait list is 23 years). And parking.

The message was reinforced in front of the Chronicle’s offices on Woodhaven Boulevard in Rego Park one day last week, when a trio of Transportation Department meter maintenance cars pulled to the curb so a group of city employees could enjoy lunch at our popular next-door neighbor, Barosa restaurant.

No one put money in any of the three meters located where they parked (one was broken, ironically enough, as it often is). The gathering lasted about an hour and a half, so at a quarter for every 15 minutes, two cars should have paid $3 altogether.

Not much money, but the cynical might believe this goes on every day across the city, costing taxpayers and drivers more to ... do things like repair parking meters.

The Transportation Department’s press office declined to respond to requests for information about the legality and propriety of city workers not paying for parking.

DOT gives some street parking back to LIC

Parking placard abuse in LIC

It'll cost ya more to park in LIC

From the Daily News:

Businesses in Queens are slamming the city for driving up parking rates in a move that critics say will force some motorists to pay nearly a thousand more dollars a year to get to work.

Merchants along Skillman Ave. in Long Island City said they were infuriated last week when they saw individual meters replaced with muni-meters - with rates more than doubled.

"I could not believe it. It's disgraceful," said David Hananel, 62, who first noticed the hike last Tuesday - a jump from $3.75 to $8 maximum for 12 hours.

"They're driving people out of the city," said Hananel, who commutes from Long Beach, L.I., to his job at Printing Resource of NY/NJ on 32nd Place.

Rates are being adjusted throughout the city as part of a larger plan, according to a city Department of Transportation spokeswoman who said the shift to muni-meters began in Queens this summer.

Similar changes are taking place this week in Rego Park, Kew Gardens, Middle Village and Forest Hills.

Merchants want parking restrictions eased along Queens Blvd

From the Daily News:

Sunnyside merchants are urging the city to change parking rules on Queens Blvd. so that it becomes a shopping destination instead of a thoroughfare for out-of-borough drivers.

Officials and business owners are asking the city to eliminate the current no-parking rule between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m.

They also want the municipal parking lots under the 7-train tracks to be reduced from 12-hour spots to four-hour spots to discourage commuters from hogging spaces.

The current no-parking rules are in place to facilitate rush-hour traffic, an agency spokeswoman said.

But the restriction kills morning business, merchants said, especially from 39th to 49th Sts. where they are proposing the changes.

Whitestone small businesses plagued by lack of parking

From the Times Ledger:

A once-booming 14th Avenue commercial corridor in Whitestone has lost at least three businesses in the past month due to a dearth of parking, two remaining store owners say.

So the businessmen — Bobby Orzo, owner of Malba Market, and Rocco DiNardo, owner of DiNardo’s Restaurant and Pizzeria — have gone to City Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone) for relief.

The street’s scant parking spaces are occupied most days from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. by the vehicles of commuting workers who drop their cars off in the free spots there each morning before taking the bus from Queens to the Bronx for work, the shopkeepers say.

“That car is here 12 hours a day, this one is here 12 hours. They’re all here 12 hours,” Orzo said, pointing out vehicles in the dozen or so nearby parking spaces, none of which have meters or restricted hours. “This is our crisis here. This block is a white elephant. It’s dying because all these spots are taken all day by these drivers. A real estate guy I was talking to said no one will move into those stores because everyone knows there’s no parking.”

The pair of small businessmen hope that by getting the city to install signs that limit the length of time people can park or meters at the dozen or so spots will help revive their revenue streams.

Missing munimeter means tickets

From WPIX:

Store owners and residents on the Upper West Side say they are getting hefty tickets for not paying the Munimeter, but there are no meters.

"It's ridiculous really," said Nick Bazas, owner of Quality Florist on 81st street and Columbus.

Bazas says after the Department of Transportation changed the design of the street and put in new bike lanes, taking out the Munimeters, he's been ticketed for legally parking.

Parking meter time extended on Queens Blvd

From Sunnyside Post:

New parking rules took effect on Queens Boulevard [Friday] that have extended the duration of parking from 1 to 2 hours.

Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, Assemblywoman Cathy Nolan and Department of Transportation Queens Borough Commissioner Maura McCarthy united with local small business owners and Community Board 2 members to announce the new rule.

The parking rule will extend the duration of 104 parking meters on the north and south side of Queens Boulevard from 1 to 2 hours. On the south side of Queens Boulevard the new meters will span from 39th Street to Greenpoint Ave. and on the north side from 39th Place to 48th Street. This new rule will phase into effect beginning April 15th and is expected to be completed by the first week of May.

Peralta's bad parking habit

From Fox 5:

Former state Senator Hiram Monserrate was caught still using his placard six months after being booted from the senate for assaulting his girlfriend.

Now Peralta, who coincidentally won Monserrate's seat, and his wife are getting free parking with placards that say the vehicles are on official police business.

"No, no. No. Look it's not about special privileges," Peralta says. "It's about from time to when you use your placard for business, when you use your placard from time to time when you are going to an event.

On each of the occasions we observed, the cars were parked at metered spaces within a block of his home.

"There are many events that occur by where I live," Peralta says. "So it happens. Yes, it does."

Into our Fox 5 Hall of Shame we induct state Senator José Peralta for misusing a police placard to avoid putting money in the meter.