July 20, 2010 Brookline to hike meter rates near Fenway??
Check out this article from Boston.com http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/brookline/2010/07/sox_fans_could_pay_more_than_2.html?camp=localsearch:on:twit:brookline
Weigh in and let me know your thoughts:
Sox fans could pay more than $20 at Brookline meters on game nights
By Brock Parker, Globe Correspondent
Red Sox fans would have to pay more than $20 to park at some Brookline parking meters on game nights under a proposed rate hike being considered by town officials.
The proposal is part of a series of parking meter changes Brookline’s Transportation Board is considering, including increasing hourly meter rates throughout much of the town, and extending the hours in which motorists must pay to park at a meter in some commercial areas.
The board will hold a hearing on the proposed changes on Sept. 20, and Brookline Transportation Director Todd Kirrane said the goal is to adopt parking meter changes by the end of October.
Red Sox fans who park along Beacon Street near the St. Mary’s T stop and then walk a half-mile to Fenway Park would see the most dramatic increases. Kirrane and Transportation Board member Bill Schwartz suggested that the rates at many metered spots in the areas could be 75 cents an hour for the first two hours and increase to $10 per hour for the third and fourth hours, bringing the total cost to $21.50.
If the Transportation Board approves the proposal, Brookline would need multi-space parking meters to be installed around the St. Mary’s T stop before the variable meter rates could be enacted.
Kirrane said the meters won’t be in place before the end of the current baseball season, but should be ready before the start of the next summer.
“For next season, we’ll have them up and running,” he said.
The proposed rate hike came after some merchants and restaurants, including the Beacon Street Tavern, said business was suffering because their patrons couldn’t find anywhere to park in the area of the St. Mary’s T stop on the night of Red Sox home games.
Schwartz, who co-chaired a Selectmen’s Parking Committee that studied problem, said the increased meter rates would create some turnover in parking spaces for business area.
“But absolutely we can’t throw out that part of it is generating revenue (for the town),” he said.
Current meter rates in the area are 75 cents per hour and the meters shut off at 6 p.m. So a Red Sox fan can park at a metered spot at 4 p.m., pay $1.50, and leave a vehicle at the metered space until well after the game is over. Fees at parking decks and lots around Fenway Park can cost up to $35.
The proposal would extend the hours the meters operate along Beacon Street from St. Mary’s to Hawes streets until 10 p.m. The higher rates would apply to dozens of metered spots along the median of Beacon Street in that area.
Curbside meters in front of the businesses along the same stretch would still charge the regular rates, but would have a two-hour time limit. So if a Red Sox fan parked in a curbside spot at 6 p.m., his vehicle could not stay in the metered spot for more than two hours without being ticketed, Kirrane said.
Although Boston does not charge more for meters around Fenway Park, Brookline would not be the first community to charge higher meter rates around a large stadium. District of Columbia charges more for metered spots around the Washington Nationals’ stadium, which opened in 2008. Meter rates around the park during games are $2 for the first hour, $8 each for the second and third hours, and $2 for the fourth hour.
Brookline’s Transportation Board is also mulling proposals to increase the hourly meter rates throughout much of the town. Kirrane said the board should increase the rates from 75 cents per hour to $1 per hour to bring the town in line with Boston, Somerville and Cambridge. But the board may also ask selectmen to give the Transportation Board the authority to raise some meters up to $2 per hour in areas where demand is high.
The hours in which motorists must pay to park at meters along much of Harvard and Beacon streets, including Coolidge Corner, could also be extended. The meters now shut off at 6 p.m., but the board is considering extending the hours the meters operate until 8 p.m.
Brock Parker can be reached at brock.globe@gmail.com.
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dgrubs
said
See an updated article from Wicked Local Brookline:
With Opening Day at Fenway Park, Red Sox fans face new $22 meter fees in Brookline
Brookline —
What’s the deal?
Earlier this month, new parking regulations started in Brookline that increased parking meter rates as high as $22 on Red Sox game days.
What is changing?
Meter hours will be extended from 6 to 8 p.m. on Beacon Street between Williston Street to the Westbourne turnaround; Marion Street to the town line; on Harvard Street, from Kent Street to the Allston border; all along Brookline Avenue; and the Centre Street East parking lot. Ten-hour meters will be extended an additional hour. And meters along Chapel Street, Brookline Avenue and the Longwood MBTA lot will go from 75 cents per hour to $1 per hour.
During Red Sox Games
The town plans on extending hours of operation and parking meter rates for parking meters located within the St. Mary’s Commercial District during home Red Sox games to realize lost revenue for the town and ensure a portion of available spaces for non-game customers of local merchant businesses. On those days, meters in that area will continue until 10 p.m., and impose a two-hour limit. Beginning at 6 p.m. on game days, meters along the Beacon Street median would charge 75 cents per hour for the first two hours, then increase to $10 per hour until 10 p.m.
Permalink #
dgrubs
said
See an updated article from Universal Hub
Brookline gets smart, changes arrive at meters near Fenway Park
By J – 4/1/11 – 12:23 am
Parking is a delicate subject, one that our elected officials like to ignore because changes usually result in anger, as few people are rational when it comes to discussing meters. Last year, Brookline commissioned a parking study and are actually going through with the suggestions. New hours, new prices and new meters come into effect on April 1st, 2011.
The problem:
Red Sox fans.
Under the current system, a red sox fan, driving to the stadium has a choice. Pay $30 to stick their car in a lot right by the stadium, and deal with the traffic to arrive and leave…. or pay $1.50 to park in Brookline and not deal with traffic.
The choice is obvious.
Fans arrive at 4pm, insert two hours worth of money in the meter ($1.50) and are free to stay as long as they want (well, not overnight).
Meanwhile, those wanting the spaces to hit the restaurants or supermarkets are out of luck. Those cars wont be moving for four or five hours.
Remember, the parking meter was invented to create turnover. 2 hour limits mean the spaces are for customers and not space-hogs.
The solution:
Make meters near the stadium be in effect until 10pm. This requires stadium goers to have to pay for their full visit.
Meters along the street, near the stadium will still enforce a 2 hour limit, keeping them free of baseball fans. Prices stay at 75 cents an hour.
Meters along the C-line will have a 4 hour limit, perfect for those staying for a game….as long as they pay a market-rate price. The first two hours cost 75 cents each, and then each additional hour goes up to $10.
So now the choice is simple. Pay $30 at a lot, or pay $21.50 on a Brookline street. Brookline stops leaving money on the table, spots clear up for local merchants, and everybody wins (stadiums fans still have a cheaper option available to them).
A map of the changes is available here:
http://www.wickedlocal.com/brookline/news/x1992230776/Red-Sox-parking-rates-hit-Brookline-meters#axzz1I9TDt3fK
Let’s hope Boston quickly follows suit. Anyone who has tried to park near Kenmore square on game days knows the same problems exist. There are zero spots available after 4pm.