By TIFFANY RAZZANO
This final tweak will add 24 parking spaces, restricted to local employees, to Municipal Parking Field 3 as of Aug. 20.
Introduced last October, the program combined the parking spots designated for commuters with those for local employees, and created one long-term parking permit. This freed up nearly 500 formerly employee-only spaces for residents to use, and more than 800 formerly resident-only spots for employees. There are about 4,100 total spaces in the village.
"Basically, in my opinion, the parking pilot program is working, but there are a few wrinkles regarding employee parking," said Police Commissioner Jack McKeon. "My final recommendation, in terms of the operational side, is to convert 24 resident stalls back to employee-only in Field 3, behind PC Richard. With PC Richard expanding, the new Ace Hardware and other stores, we wanted to provide additional relief to employees, but not at the expense of residents."
"This adjustment should provide a good balance among the various drivers using that parking lot," Mayor Mary Bossart said at the Aug. 6 Board of Trustees meeting.
McKeon said he would also make some internal, administrative adjustments, including standardizing parking signs and cleaning up the lots. Code enforcers have also been issued new uniforms, changing from brown to gray. "This way people can't call them 'brownies' anymore," McKeon said, "which I think is offensive."
The parking program has had a rocky history. The police department jumped the gun, installing signs converting employee-only spots to long-term parking a week before the program officially began last fall and local businesses were notified of the change. Many businesses and their employees were outraged by the change, claiming that it took spots away from them.
The spaces closest to the train station are coveted by both resident commuters and local workers. Businesses in that area complained that commuters took those spots first because they began their commutes into Manhattan well before local employees arrived at their jobs. Police department surveys of the village's downtown parking fields, however, determined that there usually are more than 150 long-term parking spaces available at 9 a.m., and more than 80 still open as late as 10:30, during a normal work week.
Last January, Marc Cohn, who owns Eldan Properties, a commercial real estate company in the village, as well as properties at 53 North Park Ave. and 265 Sunrise Highway, commissioned a parking expert, Howard Patrick Barry of Washington D.C.'s Barry Associates, to assess Municipal Parking Fields 3 and 5, which is located opposite Field 3, north of the railroad tracks. The study showed that 100 new spots could be created by redirecting the flow of traffic and redesigning the lot. Cohn said that Barry also indicated that about 500 new spots could be created throughout the village by redesigning all of the lots, though no formal study was done.
The village will likely make use of a consultant sometime in the next few months to see if additional spots can be created by redesigning lots. "I'd like the village to consider bringing in a consultant," McKeon said. "I'm all for it. I think it's a great [idea]. I'd be happy if that happened."
"This is the beginning, not the end," said Trustee Andrew Karamouzis at the Aug. 6 meeting. "We still need to consult with an outside parking expert. This will happen in the future, I hope."
Comments about this story? TRazzano@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 221.
