By Angela Marshall
Gary Schwartz, who is in his second year as president, told the board he thought it would be bad for the businesses of Rockville Centre. The board listened to his reasons and then voted to pass the fee increase from 25 cents an hour to 50 cents anyway.
The board felt the hike was needed to help maintain the lots, to get rid of the many broken meters and to stop the many employees who feed the meters, blocking customers from parking near the businesses.
Many in the chamber feel Schwartz did all that he could, but Keith Linsalata doesn't agree.
Linsalata, owner of Art Flower and Gift Shoppe on North Village Avenue, announced last week that he will be starting a Rockville Centre Retail Businessmen's Association. After years in the chamber, Linsalata doesn't feel the organization has lived up to its name.
Linsalata said the message he gets from the chamber about issues like the parking-fee increase is that nothing could be done to stop it. I do not believe that, he said.
The new group, Linsalata said, will find out what the Rockville Centre business owners' problems are and work to bring about solutions. We have to just stop talking about it, he said.
Linsalata said he doesn't mind the village raising fees but feels it shouldn't be done when the economy is bad and stores are already hurting for business.
The chamber is fighting very hard for the business people, said Schwartz. He said that when the board first talked of raising the fees, they planned to eliminate the use of dimes and nickel, but the chamber asked them not to because it would limit parkers' options.
I think the chamber is great and I think the village is great, said Pat Huber, owner of Better Home Health Care. As for Linsalata, Huber said, he never comes to chamber meetings.
We don't need a second chamber of commerce in Rockville Centre, said Steve Ruchman, of Ruchman Associates. He said this is not the first time Linsalata has threatened to start his own group. The chamber is strong.
Ruchman said the chamber will continue to lobby the village board to lower the parking-meter fees.
Deputy Mayor Wayne Lipton said the chamber has been truly visible and has made its interests known.
