[0:01] hey this is a regular meeting of the parking authority of the city of

[0:05] Elizabeth New Jersey listed in the animal notice at the farm by chapter 2

[0:10] 31 p.m. 1975 on that copies of the annual notice of email and we'll deliver

[0:18] to the north star gaze upon the news and ribbon

[1:04] okay probably speaking portion of the meeting we open the portion of this

[1:14] meaning to the public I see we have a I guess we'll start one by one well I

[1:25] thought that we have your name and your name's pay your name and address you

[1:30] like five minutes halt mattress or visitor's does it matter what I use Oh

[1:36] we'd appreciate your home address but business address as well will be free

[1:40] and we can go away fast yeah they can write it is you're going to see nobody

[1:57] wants to start out with more than happy to my name is Yvette for Nicole a bed

[2:02] zipper Nicola I am an owner of the business of elizabeth avenue Leonarda

[2:09] jewelers i'm here with my sister were five siblings that own the business I'm

[2:16] here because of the increase of the parking meter rates throughout the city

[2:23] of Elizabeth specifically of course I'm concerned about the parking meters on

[2:28] elizabeth avenue and the parking general one elizabeth avenue when the rates went

[2:35] up I was not aware that they were going to happen and my fault I guess I'm I

[2:39] know that it is public it's on the end of their public forms or record whatever

[2:46] but the first thing I found out it was you know somebody coming into the store

[2:50] saying what the heck a quarter for 10 minutes and somebody's in two minutes

[2:56] 15 and so one thing led to another I contacted I'm also a board member of the

[3:01] elizabeth avenue partnership i contacted them and they told me yes it's true what

[3:07] this happened so i had reached out to Mayor Pro Ajay he come on he put me in

[3:15] contact with Carla and I had been trying to rally some people together just

[3:21] because I understand that the parking authority does not get taxpayer money

[3:28] does not receive taxpayer money and you were funded solely through the meters

[3:35] and I know that you have a big nut with the parking garage that was built here a

[3:42] million dollars or whatever it is I don't know the exact figures but the

[3:48] reality of it is is that regardless of what those costs are the elizabeth

[3:54] avenue cannot sustain these residences this out of control when i reached out

[4:00] to the mayor i had done a syrup you know i had done some checking on my own going

[4:06] through online trying to find out other towns with the parking rates work I

[4:10] actually wasn't able to find anyone that was as much or more than we work and

[4:15] when I reached out to Mayor bull which he told me that Carla had done a survey

[4:22] and that she had said that the rates were comparable she sent me a list of if

[4:30] I had said I don't have an extra copy my vm tail yeah yeah now I have one more I

[4:36] have one more actually two more a three more look at that so if you guys went I

[4:41] don't pass these little round and I'd given went to the attorney at the table

[4:45] the listed on passing around incorporates Carla's list with other

[4:50] towns that I was able to get get the parking information for the ones that

[4:56] are the towns that are in italics are the one towns that carla has given me a

[5:01] list of if it's in bold that means that the price is more or the same

[5:07] Elizabeth everybody else is less Berkeley is a town I know nothing about

[5:12] I have no idea where Berkeley is but besides Burke link the only other towns

[5:17] that are as much or more ro beach towns and they're all seasonal and they're not

[5:26] even all partner it's not all of the meter spots they vary from Street to

[5:32] Street for instance in Asbury Park Ocean Avenue only is two dollars an hour for

[5:39] the rest of the town is either free parking or a dollar per meter parking

[5:45] I'm not a hundred percent sure on it that's dated in terms of May through

[5:50] October because some of the other towns that were listed belmar being one of

[5:55] them that is strictly May through October and that's only along the

[5:58] boardwalk area that is two dollars an hour and other beach towns cain't may as

[6:04] a dollar an hour other towns freehold another business district free parking

[6:11] you'll see that there is really seaside park is a dollar fifty and hours he said

[6:18] height varies from 2 to 12 dollars an hour to a dollar an hour there is to me

[6:24] there is nothing comparable to Elizabeth in terms of a business district because

[6:30] even in town speech towns where the parking on the beach is very expensive

[6:34] if there's a business district those areas are not as expensive so um that's

[6:41] why I'm here because I'm very upset I just I really don't think it's something

[6:47] that sustainable several years ago I was at one of the meetings here Claire was

[6:52] gracious enough to invite the movers with having a partnership and also the

[6:57] Midtown we have come in when at that time our parking tickets have been

[7:02] raised to $54 for overdue meters just let your 32nd ok for voodoo meters so

[7:10] again I reached out because I wanted to bring us everybody's attention and there

[7:18] at that time we were told you were doing a trial of pilot program here with the

[7:25] meter boxes and I was hoping when we were at that meeting that they would

[7:30] come to elizabeth avenue they've come to other parts of this video Lizabeth

[7:34] avenue still does not have these meters these parking boxes there is just no way

[7:40] that we can sustain these costs and we get no benefits none so that's what I hi

[7:54] my name is Vivian Zeke lund I am one of the owners of sure hi I'm livid 17

[7:59] Yarmouth court in Scotch Plains New Jersey my father's had start a business

[8:04] here on those are fabulous jewelers we attract customers from all over and bad

[8:09] enough to get them to come it's they get horrified when for 10 minutes they pay a

[8:16] quarter they don't pay it we offer our customers the money it's also not fair

[8:21] to people that live anywhere near that Avenue anyone that lives in that area

[8:25] face it they're poor they're probably on subsidies they can barely afford their

[8:30] rent and there if there parking there at all during the day it costs them a

[8:35] fortune if they forget to put a quarter in for 10 minutes then they get a $39

[8:40] ticket food ticket you know so I own a home in the inner harbor Baltimore

[8:47] Baltimore is fifty cents and the inner harbor a tourist attraction fifty cents

[8:53] for an hour I mean it just it's really not fair thank you I'm Cecilia

[9:02] Wisniewski from Union I manage property my family's property on the corner of

[9:07] high street and First Avenue and I was just alarmed same thing that's probably

[9:11] what parking here went up to 25 cents for only 10 minutes that's just you know

[9:16] that's chasing away the customers what I'm voice my concern about that Dave

[9:23] Stroh jenkem the executive director of the elizabeth avenue partnership 913

[9:27] elizabeth avenue and I'm like event said and our Chairman emerson's here you know

[9:32] I'm the voice liaison for the merchants so when the rates did increase I get a

[9:37] ton of complaints you know they're really upset and it goes against

[9:41] everything that we're doing because we spend a lot of our money that we get

[9:45] from their property taxes to market the downtown we spend a lot of money to

[9:49] clean the downtown keep it safe so this goes against our RM oh you know we're

[9:55] doing so we're trying so hard to bring people down eat at a restaurant shop at

[9:59] our stores and boom 10 minutes goes by by the time they get out and they kind

[10:03] of find where the store is you know they get a ticket they're not come of that

[10:07] they're going to be pissed they it leaves a bad taste in their mouth so we

[10:11] really you know on behalf of the merchants just here to leave with you

[10:15] guys and plead with you you know maybe you could bring it up to 12 minutes you

[10:19] know you know just yeah back then I the 15 Club minute but yeah there's how you

[10:26] can do you how did you know I know you guys have your with Carla's letter and

[10:29] it's just important to work together with us like Michaels here from the

[10:33] Midtown s ID and last night we were at a dead mo event at the parking garage and

[10:38] it's a wonderful tourist destination event and they're trying so hard to

[10:42] bring people into Elizabeth and Edwin Gomez was there from Mars a demand from

[10:47] Vimeo business owner of chupitos and other restaurants and he said all this

[10:52] that we're doing here doesn't mean anything at the 25 cents for 10 minutes

[10:57] continues because we're going to recruit people are going to market a track

[11:00] people down here and then they're gonna get a ticket so we just want you guys to

[11:04] work with you know we hope that you would work with us a little more and

[11:07] respect our efforts over the last 10 years of bringing people down your

[11:13] marketing keeping it clean keeping it safe and attracting customers we're not

[11:17] here to shoot customers away or scare customers away

[11:19] so we hope that you could reconsider this somehow some way and think about

[11:25] what we're saying here because this is not just five six ten people in here

[11:29] these are the merchants these are 300 merchants on my avenue Michael's got

[11:33] James under 70 the guy from Nomura was there last night from the pharmacy he

[11:39] said he was going to come tonight edwin said he was in town so there there's

[11:42] different groups than in this city that really are against us and they're really

[11:47] upset about this especially the hard-working business owner that's

[11:50] trying to make it in this in the city

[11:57] Michael Oh Bryce I'm the chairman of the big town special district I've been

[12:04] chairman for 11 years and almost every meeting monthly meetings in almost every

[12:11] meeting we spend time discussing the park we used to have a subsidy which we

[12:16] had to cut out for budget constraints just we tried to get a merchant's the

[12:20] park more in the lots and garages and you would subsidize what they were

[12:25] paying the parking authority so midtown is historically probably the worst place

[12:30] to park in Elizabeth or at least with the least amount of parking most amount

[12:36] of businesses we had a problem I guess where we work together with the parking

[12:42] authority and the the fine was reduced because it was increased to an amount

[12:47] that was larger than most other cities in New Jersey and humbled to listen

[12:55] right but we work together with with the sport and did get reduced the

[13:01] Commonwealth us is your Jersey City New York Patterson to say and everything

[13:05] that I've seen there they charge a dollar an hour for parking where dibala

[13:11] 50 that's fifty percent increase over over what we were charging and what they

[13:18] charge now if if the merchants are going to attract people here like like events

[13:24] up from out of town any two things they need to seek these streets and safe

[13:29] streets and it places the park we have to do system which which right so it

[13:37] makes things a lot easier for everybody so I guess if it's not too late we're

[13:42] just a little here to even work with you guys over the next couple months they

[13:48] just tossed some ideas around I don't know what why be increased was put in

[13:53] but I'm sure was to increase revenue somehow and if there's a way that we can

[13:56] cope with different ideas they're free different concepts look at other things

[14:01] that work together with you guys that that's just what we really want to do

[14:06] better for everybody thank you

[14:11] nobody else wish to speak

[14:18] my name is Emerson amadora I'm the chairman of the elizabeth avenue

[14:22] partnership i also have a business on the Avenue I do get clients coming in

[14:28] all the time to meet and all of a sudden you know they have to dart out because

[14:34] of the time constraints on the the mother so I was taken aback when we got

[14:42] the letter saying well basically this is it we're changing it from fifteen cents

[14:48] to ten cents too bad 15 15 minutes to 15 minutes of 10 minutes you know too bad

[14:54] really feel that that's hurting the merchants specifically everybody on the

[14:59] Avenue in other parts of the city you know especially when they're on the

[15:03] tight budget stuff like that to really should be addressed yeah we're together

[15:16] we'll take all your comment we just can't give you an answer right now we

[15:37] appreciate the appreciate the forum and allowing us to speak in allowing us to

[15:42] even tell us that you're even considering to work with us or you know

[15:47] because it's the first time we've ever heard back so that's a positive sign

[15:54] I guess is that everybody is full is alternating

[16:51] mr. Martinez yes sure all of that yes Timothy that's fine i also need a

[17:07] special meeting to real all the special only improved the minute to discuss the

[17:11] meaning of jun 24

[17:45] oh you like

[18:04] second fashion I surely it Martina advice for older man I 17 your most

[18:20] include the repression of petty cash

[18:56] we have one new item my number correct resolution 16 find a resolution services

[19:13] on call me in tears and parking facilities where at the parking garage

[19:20] Marquis d'auriville independent chairman me for on call maintenance for parking

[19:24] facilities and whereas the bearers comply with NJ essays 10 45 ish 31

[19:30] consider and New Jersey sa-17 home 27 and whereas Marva waterproofing

[19:37] implicated 6800 goats in New Jersey Oh 7013 the lowest responsible responses

[19:45] there and now therefore be it resolved if commissioners of Mark authority of an

[19:48] author waterproofing for 24 months as an option

[19:53] to extend the 24 additional month one in the ring to do so by both the awarded

[19:57] under and the parking sorry on a time I material not to exceed the rate has date

[20:01] instead will attach the attachment is time immaterial rages well this is to

[20:13] maintain our garages every so often we you report to several times when a piece

[20:18] of concrete poles so we want to make sure that now we want to the emergency

[20:22] we just call the company and they can fix this this was in conjunction with

[20:27] our engineering there's engineering business desmond a medical Desmond

[20:32] designers of the group is our architect and engineers and they recommend it that

[20:37] we do this so that way we can then call the people that have for emergency under

[20:42] 24-hour so anytime you and I are day right also we have a 24 24 month

[20:47] contract with them if we are satisfied with their after 24 months we're

[20:51] satisfied with their work to extend it 24 hours assuming they agree and we

[20:56] agree i miss well done pursuant to a fair and open beta ground they're not

[20:59] been fitted out they put it put a bid and they came with the lowest responsive

[21:14] I

[21:50] good

Parking Authority of the City of Elizabeth (NJ) Regular Meeting - August 12, 2015

Transcript