NOVEMBER 30, 2015, 5:47 PM LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2015, 5:47 PM
RIDGEWOOD — Local officials will ask for public comment Wednesday night regarding the size and scope of the proposed Hudson Street parking garage, the construction of which is expected to ease longstanding parking concerns in the village’s crowded downtown.
Mayor Paul Aronsohn said the 7:30 p.m. meeting will feature a presentation by parking deck designer Desman Design Management and give residents a chance to provide opinions on the structure’s height, square-footage, and car capacity. Aronsohn intends to hold an informal council vote that night and introduce a bond ordinance on Dec. 9 to fund construction.
Voters endorsed the garage by nearly a 2-to-1 majority in a non-binding referendum last month. That referendum’s wording said the garage was anticipated to provide a net increase of about 300 spaces without having a “negative impact” on property taxes because parking revenues would be used to pay off the construction debt.
According to documents on the village website, three parking decks of varying sizes have been proposed.
How do we fund insurance, maintenance and repair, lighting & electricity and security ? What budget pays for operating expenses? What guarantees do taxpayers have that the garage won’t come in late on over budget? Our municipal government has never built anything in Ridgewood on time, or on budget, so what is the Cojncil doing to mitigate this risk? Why not make it a public private partnership with business owners in the CBD so at least they have their own skin in the game? Otherwise we’re at the mercy of the Village engineer’s “change order” scam to inflate contract prices
12:07pm-
See some answers regarding operating costs and the financial model in these previous threads:
https://theridgewoodblog.net/ridgewood-guild-winter-festival-carriage-ride-reveals-many-empty-parking-spots/
https://theridgewoodblog.net/ridgewood-mayor-aronsohn-not-whether-to-build-a-parking-deck-or-even-where-to-build-it-rather-the-questions-are-what-size-and-at-what-cost/
https://theridgewoodblog.net/ridgewood-parking-revenues-can-support-largest-garage/
https://theridgewoodblog.net/ridgewood-residents-will-have-an-opportunity-to-chime-in-on-the-parking-garage-design-on-december-2nd/
We don’t appear to have any answers yet on pro-active risk mitigation or steps they will take to deliver at projected cost. The council definitely needs to answer these questions, in addition to answer why public-private risk sharing models weren’t considered and/or adopted.
Your last paragraph about sums it for meJohn.