|
August 09, 2009
TRAFFIC BOARD TO CONVENE PUBLIC HEARING ON AUGUST 13TH TO TAKE COMMENTS ON NEW PARKING REGULATIONS
Resident Petition Triggers Hearing on Increased Meter Rates, Hours and Rollout of Citywide Permit Parking; Meeting Scheduled for 6 p.m. in Aldermanic Chambers at City Hall
SOMERVILLE - Acting Director of Traffic and Parking James Kotzuba has announced that the City's three-member Traffic Board will hold an August 13th public hearing at 6:00 p.m. at City Hall to take comments on recent changes to the City's parking regulations, including increased rates and hours of operation for parking meters and the introduction of resident permit parking to the remaining one-third of Somerville not covered by resident permit rules. Originally voted on May 21st by the Traffic Commission (a five-member board charged with setting traffic and parking policies for the City), the new regulations have already been heavily modified by a special, advisory Parking Solutions Task Force (PSTF) created by Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone.
New meter rates ($1 per hour) and hours (8 a.m. to 8 p.m.) went into effect in late July. The change to citywide permit parking was originally authorized to begin August 1st but has not yet begun: the delay in rolling out the new rules came in response to changes recommended by the PSTF, a fourteen-member group that includes several business owners and residents as well as three aldermen (Alderman at Large Dennis Sullivan; Ward 6 Alderman Rebekah Gewirtz; and Ward 7 Alderman Robert Trane); local parking expert and resident Mark Chase; and several City officials.
"The Traffic Board only convenes when actions of the Traffic Commission are challenged by a petition signed by at least fifty registered Somerville voters," said Kotzuba. "Two petitions were submitted to the Department of Traffic and Parking on July 31st, and the Elections Department has verified that one of the petitions has 88 valid voter signatures. That's more than enough to require a Traffic Board review. It doesn't happen very often: the last time we had one of these was 2003."
Under the terms of the City Charter, a valid petition requires the Traffic Board to convene a public hearing and take testimony within two weeks of accepting the petition. The Board then decides by simple majority vote whether to approve or reject the challenged actions of the Traffic Commission. "The Traffic Board can't modify the changes - only let them stand or throw them out," said Kotzuba. "If they reject the changes, we will revert to the rules we had last May."
The changes passed by the Traffic Commission on May 21st were made in response to suggestions from the City's Financial Advisory Committee, a group of outside experts convened to study ways for the City to cut costs, streamline operations and improve revenues in the face of deep cuts in state aid for FY2010, which began on July 1st. The City has already reduced its budget by $4 million compared to the prior year. If the City does not realize the estimated $1.75 million in revenue from the new parking changes, Mayor Curtatone has indicated that additional budget cuts may be necessary.
The changes are also based in part on recommendations made in an independent survey and study of parking demand in Davis Square conducted in 2008 with input from the Davis Area Resident Business Initiative (DARBI) and the Somerville Chamber of Commerce. The study called for changes in meter pricing policy to improve the supply and availability of parking in Somerville business districts.
The Traffic Commission is currently reviewing a recommendation from the PSTF to designate eight main thoroughfares (Broadway, Medford Street, Highland Avenue, Holland Street, Elm Street, Somerville Ave, Beacon Street, and Washington Street) as "Resident Permit Parking Only between 2:30 am and 10 am with non-permitted two-hour parking and unrestricted permit parking during other times." The change would preserve daytime and evening parking options for non-permitted vehicles, but discourage overnight "dumping" and commuter parking by non-residents. At its July 30th meeting, the Commission voted to table the proposal so that it can consider amendments suggested by the public to reduce the "permit-only" window to only five-and-one-half hours (2:30 a.m. - 8 a.m.) and to add several more streets to the original list of eight.
"As we move toward full implementation, we've made a lot of adjustments to accommodate specific concerns from businesses, faith groups whose services don't fall on Sundays, artists who work here but don't live here, and a lot more," said Kotzuba. "I'm glad we'll be having a hearing, because we've tried to get the word out on the many ways we're fine-tuning our implementation plan, but there's still a lot of misinformation and confusion out there. I hope this hearing will provide the public with a better understanding of the way the rules work as well as the concerns people have about them."
A copy of the full Parking Solutions Task Force Report and Recommendations, a copy of the Davis Square Parking Study, and a copy of the City Ordinance describing the composition, function and powers of the Traffic Commission and the Traffic Board are all available on a special "City Spotlight" Parking Policy Changes web page linked to the City websites home page, www.somervillema.gov. A copy of the Financial Advisory Committee report is available on the FY2009-10 Budget page, also featured as a home page "City Spotlight" link.
|
