Tag: parking

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WE NEED YOU AT THE RIDGEWOOD PARKING GARAGE MEETING TONIGHT

Village _council_meeting_theridgewoodblog

file photo by Boyd Loving

MY ESSAY ON WHY WE NEED YOU AT THE PARKING GARAGE MEETING ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT, 1/6.

By Dave Slomin.

Dear Supporters of Citizens for a Better Ridgewood,

This Wednesday night, 1/6, our Village Council is meeting (7:30 at Village Hall) to vote on a $12 million dollar bond to fund the biggest garage possible on the Hudson Street lot, near Sook and Mt. Carmel.  We need Residents to attend… to be seen and be heard, to share your thoughts and concerns.  The current plan is approximately 270’ long by 50+’ high… almost the size of a football field.  Even if they opt for the smallest current option, it only shrinks by 10 feet in height.  Once built, Hudson Street will be narrowed by 10’, street parking will be lost, neighboring buildings will be dwarfed, Mt. Carmel will be impacted and it will set a size and scale precedent which will be used by developers to argue for bigger, taller and denser multi-family buildings throughout our historic downtown.

That said, personally, I don’t think a parking deck, fittingly sized, is necessarily a bad idea at all…  just like I don’t think that multifamily developments, fittingly-sized, are a bad idea at all.  I just think the proposals we’ve seen on both are way too big, too dense, and too out of character to preserve the small-town feel of our beloved Village.  For parking, in addition to a revised garage plan, the council should better review and advise on other options that spread new parking throughout our CBD, while also making drivers better aware of current parking options through signage.

I’d also like to hear more about possibly creating a Business Improvement District (BID) downtown, to get the landlords who will directly profit from this garage to chip in some more to help pay for it.  That’s needed, because financing the garage is too tentative at present.  The language of the actual referendum didn’t point out that much of the funding for the garage will come from increasing current meter rates in other key areas of downtown by up to 300-400% and increasing paid parking hours from 6pm to 9pm.  The garage does not pay for itself.  That’s pretty important stuff to know… or at least test out before you start writing checks that bank on its success.  The last time Ridgewood increased parking hours to raise revenue, the Chamber of Commerce themselves complained and asked to have the hours paired back to 6pm.  So before we spend $12MM, we should have a firmer idea how it’ll be paid back.  Last time, some of these “givens” didn’t work so well.

Regarding size, in a November email, one Councilmember supported the notion that “quaint” is in the eye of the beholder.  I’m not sure I know of any ‘beholders’ that would think the current garage plan is quaint.  It’s not.  As is, it’s massive.  At a recent Council Meeting, the former Chairman of Ridgewood’s Historical Preservation Committee said he feared if we build this thing, we’ll look at it afterwards and think, “My, that’s a really big building.”

Backstory is… in November, our Council put forth a parking referendum, asking:  “Do you support a proposal to finance and build a downtown parking garage on the Hudson Street lot… by bonding up to $15 million in public funds, which will be paid for principally, if not entirely, with parking revenues.”  65% voters voted “Yes.”  However, even in voting “Yes,” many folks asked indicated they really voted more for “parking in general” than a singular giant garage.  No one had any real idea how big the garage would be, as it was not determined.  Yet, several Councilmembers are using this vote as if it were a ‘blank check’ in support of building the biggest edifice possible, or something close to it.  That’s not right.

At the time of the referendum, Residents were essentially promised that we could vote “Yes,” and then negotiate the garage’s size later.  Despite this promise, the Council so curtailed the subsequent public garage discussions that concerned residents could not give full voice to their opinions.  At the main post-referendum garage meeting, initial public comment was limited to 30 minutes total (at five minutes per speaker) and then to a maximum of 3 minutes per speaker later, with no repeat speakers allowed (even though the meeting was not running late and some folks, myself included, could not finish their presentations within the 3 minute limit).   I was actually asked to sit down and not speak again by a Village staffer.  As such, there was no real negotiation on anything.  The post-referendum garage selection process felt frustratingly preordained… like so much of what we are seeing happen in Ridgewood lately.

At the end of that meeting the Council polled 3-2 to bond for the largest garage option.  This all-too-quick and ‘non-negotiated’ selection, which also wrongly occurred before the comprehensive traffic and parking study promised on 9/30/15 has been performed, raises further concerns with the “process” by which things are happening in Ridgewood.

So, in short, while we should use the opportunity of this referendum to make some smart and truly fitting decisions regarding parking, we should not rush into construction of the current over-sized garage options.  Bigger for Ridgewood is not better.

Hope to see you on Wednesday night

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Ridgewood Parking Rates and the Hudson Parking Garage

Parking_meters_theridgewoodblog

January 6,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood Nj, Are increased meter rates killing down town Ridgewood more than the precised lack of parking ? Both Glen Rock ,Westwood both have lower parking rates Ridgewood  and similar down town shopping districts or Central Business districts ( CBD’s ) .

The funny thing was given all the metered parking in the USA there is very little written on the effect of parking fees on shopping behaviors . We did find a pretty in depth study done in Massachusetts by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) which we will refer to in this article.

First it obvious to us that parking fees are only one of many variables in attracting shoppers to a CBD and creating a successful climate for merchants.
Rents, resident demographics , types of retail, destination locations and infrastructure all play a part.

The MAPC makes to interesting points about parking fees :

If free on-street parking means there are never any spaces available, charging for parking can improve business. The inability to find a parking space can be at least as much of a deterrent as the need to pay for one, so if charging a nominal fee for parking means that there are usually a few spaces available rather than there rarely being any spaces available, this may make the area more attractive to customers.( https://www.mapc.org/resources/parking-toolkit/strategies-topic/charging-parking )

In order for charging for parking to be effective, it must free up some parking spaces, which means it must impact travel behavior and reduce demand for parking. The question is whether discouraging people from parking discourages them from visiting the area, or simply encourages them to get there another way. Some possible impacts of charging for parking are given below. Whether potential shoppers who might be deterred by the price of parking are driven away or whether they simply find other ways to get there will depend in part on the availability and appeal of alternate ways to get to the area. ( https://www.mapc.org/resources/parking-toolkit/strategies-topic/charging-parking )

Again the key finding :

A large part of whether charging for parking will negatively impact businesses depends on how attractive the district is relative to other options. If there is a popular mall a short drive away providing many of the same goods and services with free parking, that can increase the likelihood that people will go elsewhere. On the other hand, if the downtown provides enough amenities and attractions – such as restaurants, bars, and appealing outdoor spaces – that cannot be replaced by a mall or isolated shopping center, the downtown is more likely to succeed.( https://www.mapc.org/resources/parking-toolkit/strategies-topic/charging-parking )

But an even more interesting conclusion about garage vs street parking :

Many people prefer to park in on-street parking rather than an off-street lot or garage because of the convenience. If off-street parking is limited or is primarily available as pay lots or garages while on-street parking is free, drivers will tend to circle blocks repeatedly looking for an open space on the street rather than paying to park. This congests streets with unnecessary traffic and pollutes the air with unnecessary emissions. It also means that expensive garages in which the municipality may have invested a significant amount of money may be underutilized and generate less revenue than expected. In this type of situation, implementing charges for on-street parking is critical to free up on-street spaces, encourage drivers to use pay lots or garages, and reduce “cruising” for parking. If off-street parking is priced, on-street parking should be priced as well, and should ideally be priced higher than structured parking. If off-street parking is mostly free surface lots and there is rarely a shortage of spaces available, low prices may be effective in encouraging people to use off-street options where available if convenience is not a top priority. ( https://www.mapc.org/resources/parking-toolkit/strategies-topic/charging-parking )

 

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Ridgewood Parking Utility Revenue

parking_enforcement_theridgewoodblog

Parking Utility Revenue – 01/01/15 – 11/30/15
January 5,2015

Boyd A. Loving

Ridgewood NJ, This data was obtained via a formal Open Public Records Act request.

img278 1

As you can see, discounting the insurance company settlement received in connection with the theft of funds by Thomas Rica, the largest source of line item revenue for the Parking Utility during the noted time period is cash from on street parking meters.

Other significant revenue sources include:  Fees for annual parking permits, rental fees for dedicated parking at the Route 17 Park & Ride, CBD employee parking at the former Ken Smith Motors facility, metered parking at lots on Cottage Place, North Walnut Street, Prospect Street, Station Plaza, Hudson Street, and the Route 17 Park & Ride, and revenue generated from the Park Mobile smart phone application.

This data should enable you to understand why a proposed increase in metered parking rates, coupled with a extension of the time metered parking is in effect, could significantly boost overall Parking Utility revenues.

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Promises Made on the Ridgewood Parking Campaign

Parking Garage

file photo by Boyd Loving

Dear Paul,

I hope the holidays were kind to you and that the power issues at town hall are resolved. In case they aren’t, I’ve also included your other email address.

I wanted to discuss your recent Mayor’s Corner column which appeared in my inbox on January 2nd, where you spoke at length about civility.

Civility is something I am so with you about. It is too easy for people to forget this and to fall into behavior that is shortsighted and damaging to the fabric of our wonderful democracy. For you to keep bringing this up is exemplary and serves as a reminder of us all continuing to raise the bar in this regard.

It’s certainly reminded me, which is why I’m writing to you.

While I applaud your efforts to get things done (certainly as a filmmaker, I know the herculean effort it sometimes requires to do so) I also feel obligated to our community to speak out when I observe actions that fall below this bar of civility you and I hold ourselves to.

When I read in your January 2nd email/column that “We need to honor the votes cast by the 3,236 Ridgewood residents – a full 65% — who voted “yes” to building a 400-car parking deck at Hudson Street” it prompts me to speak out.

I speak out because of what you wrote in the pasted below email from November 1st with the subject heading “Parking Campaign – Please Read and Please Share” (bolding/CAPs from your original email included) :

“Tuesday’s referendum question is ONLY asking if residents support financing and building a garage on the Hudson Street lot.   Nothing more.  Nothing less.   You will NOT be voting on the size, look or any other aspect of a proposed parking deck.”

As you clearly stated in that email, the vote was not a ‘yes’ for a 400 car parking garage. It was a non-binding referendum and to add parking at Hudson, bond the money and work with the public on scale and design.

Furthermore, your intention to vote a bond through the county if you don’t achieve a super majority from our council is not an acceptable path for one who wishes to respect the needs of one’s constituents and to maintain civility.

Lastly, as dictated by September 30th Village Council vote and based on the specificity of the comprehensive traffic study that you voted in favor of that evening, any movement on the traffic garage should be tabled until that study is complete. To override that vote and forcibly move forward with this bond puts the whole process into question.

Paul, many of us, myself included, are in favor of finding ways to assuage the parking situation in town. In the name of civility and for the sake of our village, I urge you to honor the vote you cast on September 30th with regards to completing the comprehensive parking study before moving forward with this traffic garage.

See you Wednesday night at 7:30pm.

Sincerely,

Dana

Dana H. Glazer
61 Clinton Avenue

On Sun, Nov 1, 2015 at 12:53 PM, Paul Aronsohn <[email protected]> wrote:

 Dear Neighbor,

Election Day is just around the corner … and the campaign to build Ridgewood’s first parking deck has been gaining support.   As I walk through town and talk to literally thousands of residents, I can tell you that people increasingly realize that a “yes” vote for the parking referendum is a “yes” vote for Ridgewood.

And in addition to the many individual residents who have expressed strong support, we now have three important letters of endorsement – all supporting this initiative, all encouraging a “yes” vote on Tuesday.

§                  The Ridgewood Financial Advisory Committee
§                  The Ridgewood Historic Preservation Commission
§                  The Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce President
 
Without question, this is all very exciting.

Unfortunately, however, an anonymous mailer was sent to many Ridgewood homes this weekend – an anonymous mailer that was sent from a Newark Post Office and that is full of misinformation and distortions.  And although no one was willing to take responsibility for the mailer, the language in it is strikingly similar to that used recently by others trying to undermine this important project for the Village.

So, let me set the record straight on some of the key issues being discussed:

ü  Parking revenues – NOT taxes – would pay for this parking deck.  We have commissioned an independent financial analysis that demonstrates that we could easily pay for a parking deck using only parking revenues.  Here is that analysis.

ü  There would be NO charge for parking on Sundays.  We don’t charge for parking on Sundays.  Period.  That’s true now.  That will be true if/when we build a parking deck.

ü  There have been NO decisions taken with respect to meter times or rates.   The independent financial analysis gave us a menu of options for paying for a parking deck without raising taxes.  It would be up to the Council – with public input – to decide on any rate or time changes.

 ü  The size and appearance of the proposed parking deck have NOT yet been decided.  Our design team – with a great deal of public input – has been developing renderings of what a parking deck could look like, but we have NOT decided on size or appearance.  Those two issues would be decided after the vote on the referendum.  

ü  Tuesday’s referendum question is ONLY asking if residents support financing and building a garage on the Hudson Street lot.   Nothing more.  Nothing less.   You will NOT be voting on the size, look or any other aspect of a proposed parking deck. Here is a copy of the official ballot question.

ü  The anonymous mailer greatly DISTORTS the size of the proposed parking deck.  As noted on the mailer in very small letters, “artist rendering, not to exact scale.”

ü  A parking deck would likely lead to a significant DECREASE in traffic.  According to our independent traffic consultant, a parking deck on the Hudson Street lot would have a very positive affect on the overall downtown traffic situation.  The primary reason for this is that a parking deck would eliminate the need to drive around and around and around looking for a parking space.
 
 ü  A parking deck would benefit ALL Ridgewood residents … commuters as well as shoppers/diners.    The Council would have to decide how best to use the parking deck, but we would likely set aside some parking for commuters and some for those shopping, dining and working downtown.

ü  Tuesday’s vote provides ALL Ridgewood residents with a unique opportunity.   As outlined in my letter-to-the-editor,  we have an opportunity to do something smart, important and wonderful for our community.

As always, thank you….

Best,

Paul

Paul Aronsohn, Mayor
Village of Ridgewood
@paularonsohn

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Ridgewood Voters Get Garage Buyers Remorse

Hudson Street Parking Garage
photo courtesy of Edward Feldsott
January 4,2015

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, It seems that many who voted YES, voted ‘yes” for more parking. More parking yes , but not a monstrosity of a parking high-rise building being proposed for the Hudson Street parking lot. Many feel they were misled into thinking that a particular design had not been decided upon, even though this giant megastructure was the only option that was ever, in reality, on the table.

Everyone is quite aware of the peak demand parking shortage in our Village. The above is an image of what the proposed garage would look like. As you can see if dwarfs all the surrounding buikdings. If this monstrosity of a garage is not what you signed up for, when you voted YES for parking, please attend this Wednesdays Village Council meeting and let the Mayor and members of the Village Council know that this mega garage may work for Hackensack or Ft Lee but definitely does not fit in to the character of our Village. Furthermore, plans for any garage should be held off until the 4 impact studies are concluded. What is the point of having impact studies on traffic, etc… if our Village Council pushes through this huge garage.

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Ken Smith parking lot in Ridgewood to be repurposed

Ken Smith parking lot

Photo credit:   Boyd A. Loving
Ken Smith parking lot in Ridgewood to be repurposed
December 31,2015
Boyd A. Loving

Ridgewood NJ ,At a recent public meeting of the Village Council, Village Manager Roberta Sonenfeld reported that the large parking lot at the former Ken Smith Motors will be repurposed by the property’s owner.

The lot is now being used for CBD employee parking on a permit only basis.  Village of Ridgewood parking enforcement agents patrol the lot and issue summonses to violators.   The Village currently receives a percentage of each permit fee.

The effective date for complete control by the property’s owner was said to be 1/1/2016.  It is reported that the owner plans to offer commuter parking as well as employee parking (maybe “open” parking as well).  The Village will not receive any revenue under the new plan, and will not provide any enforcement services.

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Our Lady of Mount Carmel Discusses The Impact of the Hudson Street Parking Garage

Our_Lady_of_Mount_Carme_l-Church_theridgewoodblog

Dear friends,

Today is Holy Family Sunday, the day on which the Church celebrates family life and asks us to reflect on the family as
the basic unit of society. It is the family in which we are nurtured and nourished and which, throughout our lives,
offers the support that allows us to continue to grow and, at the same time, to be secure in the knowledge that there is a
place where we are loved. It is in the family that we experience the ties that bind, bringing us together into the
most intimate of all human relationships. We all know that families continue under a great deal of stress right now, not
only because so many households now have to have two “breadwinners,” but also because of the number of marriage
relationships that have failed and the stress of “blended families,” and the continued pressure to re-define marriage,
now also including the looming possibility that polygamy will be the next hot-button issue.

As our reflection, I once again offer this prayer, composed by the poet Robert Louis Stevenson, for all our families and
for the parish family of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. It captures so many of the deepest wishes we hope for our
families and it is my hope, prayer and wish for all of you. Lord, behold our family here assembled. We thank you
for this place in which we dwell; for the love that unites us; for the peace accorded us this day; for the hope
with which we wait for tomorrow; for the health, the work, the food and the bright skies that make our lives
delightful; for our friends in all parts of the earth.

Let peace abound in our small community. Purge out of every heart the lurking grudge. Give us grace and
strength to forbear and persevere. Give us the grace to accept and forgive offenses. Forgetful ourselves, help
us to bear cheerfully the forgetfulness of others.

Give us courage and gaiety and a quiet mind. Spare us to our friends, soften us to our enemies. Bless us in all
our endeavors. Give us the strength to encounter that which is to come that we may be brave in peril,
constant in tribulation, temperate in wrath and in all changes in fortune, and down to the gates of death,
loyal and loving, one to another.

As the clay to the potter, as the windmill to the wind, as children to their father, we ask of You this help and
mercy for Christ’s sake. Amen.

God bless all our families and this parish family of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and a very large and warm thank
you for all of you who make this parish a real family.

All peace and joy in the New Year,

Fr. Ron

P.S. And here I go with another PS, which directly affects this parish family that I just wrote about. I have
briefly written previously on the proposed parking garage the Village is considering building on the site of
the present ground lot on Hudson Street. The Council had a first vote on the authorization of the bonds to pay
for the lot. I am not sure if the Council has officially approved the largest of the designs, for 400+ cars, but, I
believe the bond issue would be for an amount that is needed for that design.

As I wrote, I have concerns about the proposed size of that project, the traffic it could create around the church, and the
proposed re-orientation of Hudson and Passaic Streets, affecting the way funerals park at Mount Carmel and ingress and
egress into and from the driveways that surround the former convent. As I write this, we have engaged an
independent consultant to review the Traffic Impact Study prepared for the Village.

I invite all interested parishioners to one of two meetings to be held this week, one on Tuesday evening, December
29, 2015 at 7:30 PM or, for those who prefer not to come out at night, Wednesday afternoon, December 30, 2015
at 2:00 PM. Both meetings will be held in the Parish

Center and the purpose is to give you any information about our review of the Traffic Impact Study and to
offer you the opportunity to respond to the project proposed by the Village. In preparation, I encourage
everyone to go to the Village website www.ridgewoodnj.net . If you click on the Hudson

Street garage icon you will find some valuable information, including the simulations of the designed
garage as it fits into adjacent buildings and from different perspectives. It is very helpful in understanding the project.

It is important that we hear from you before January 6, 2016, when the Village Council will take up the Bond Issue again.

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Reader says The CSAC is absolutely right when it identifies parking lots as dangerous places and anything that makes them a little safer would be a welcome change

parking garage cbd

 

The CSAC is absolutely right when it identifies parking lots as dangerous places and anything that makes them a little safer would be a welcome change. There is obviously be a cost associated with that plan – how much would parking lot re-striping cost? This is where the devil really IS in the details. As an example, how much change could there be in even one parking lot for the amount that was just spent on that electronic sign at the train station? There are ways to scrimp and save when something is really important.

Additionally, we can’t expect the police department to be everywhere all the time. It seems unrealistic to think they can provide full traffic safety coverage in the CBD all the time. An increased police presence would definitely be an effective deterrent and make people less likely to drive like maniacs, but in the meantime we must figure out some other ways to protect ourselves. Can’t we have (some version of) crossing guards in the most dangerous intersections at the most dangerous times of day? Crossing guards are not full-time and not paid much but, for the most part, drivers do yield to their directions. Reasonable hourly pay and no benefits makes it at least something to consider in the short term – until we figure out another way.

I think most of us appreciate Ridgewood for its relative safety, i.e. low crime rate. We have a town in which it’s actually possible to allow our kids to go downtown alone and walk around – in many ways a really nice throwback to an earlier era. However, even though we have that luxury, we have to worry that they will be killed by a car if we let them go. It’s sad and a waste of the police dept’s efforts to keep it a safe place.

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Ridgewood 2016 Resident Parking Permits – Available Now

parking_enforcement_theridgewoodblog

2016 Resident Parking Permits – Available Now

January – December 2016

Ridgewood Parking Permits – RPP

Click Here for information and details.

RPPs will be sold each business day from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Be sure to bring for both new applications as well as renewals, both their driver’s license and the registration for the cars they wish to register for the permits.

Annual Resident Stickers are available for free

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Ridgewood to conduct studies on housing plans

clock ridgewood NJ

DECEMBER 18, 2015    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2015, 12:31 AM
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

The Village Council agreed last week to conduct four impact studies related to proposed multifamily housing projects in Ridgewood.

“It is our intention, per previous conversations, to go forward with four impact studies to look at issues like financial impact, school impact, (municipal) infrastructure as well as traffic,” Mayor Paul Aronsohn said.

These studies, which many residents have been calling for, will be performed by various consultants, according to Village Manager Roberta Sonenfeld.

“We’re looking at those four things,” she said, “and we’re telling the consultants that it’s based upon realistic build-out analysis for the four sites under current vs. proposed zoning.”

“We developed some of our own input and we went out to eight potential providers of this kind of information,” Sonenfeld said.

“The current status is that we have one provider who’s provided a very preliminary proposal that includes all four areas and includes some reliance on previously obtained data, and that’s BFJ/Urbanomics,” she said.

Sonenfeld said that other companies submitted proposals for separate areas of study.

“We reached out to Ross Haber in education; we reached out to Heyer Gruel Associates for fiscal impact and education; we reached out to Maser Consulting for traffic and we are in the process of reaching out to the RBA Group for traffic as well,” she said.

She explained that if all goes according to plan, the consultants will come before the council during a special public work session and make presentations before the next council meeting on Jan. 6th.

https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/town-government/council-votes-to-conduct-four-impact-studies-1.1475968

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Readers Respond ParkWise parking space finding App for Ridgewood

parkwise

December 18,2015
the staff  of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, readers responded with sarcastic wit at the possibility of using the ParkWise parking space locator App to quickly find down town parking availability. Some laughed  ,” Not much of an advantage for Ridgewoodites. There will be plenty of open spots in the new parking structure.”

Other’s said “This idea makes great sense. Which is why, of course, the council and Roberta will not have anything to do with it.”

Many have learned over the years that with the Village of Ridgewood the MOST EXPENSIVE SOLUTION is always the best. Whether this is building and over priced ramp at Graydon Pool that nobody uses instead of the far better but cheaper alternative of the “mobi chair” .

Why should taxpayers spend nothing when we could spend millions needlessly? Thank you Paul, Albert, and Gwenn. is the question that rolls of readers tongue ?

Some still not really seeing the parking issue  and said , “or they could drive around the block twice and find a spot.”

Other’s offered us a glimpse into the criminal mind  as demonstrated in the past when Parking Meter improvement suggestion were being made, the suggestions were always attacked . Since then we have all learned that certain employees had a vested interest in carting out the lose change , ” That’s Boston…This is Ridgewood. Get over yourself’s Boston you are NOT.what a complete waste of time and effort.”

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Parking Garage Vote Must Be Tabled!

Hudson Garage

“January 6th Parking Garage Vote Must Be Tabled”

Regardless of where you stand on development in Ridgewood, one thing we can all agree on is that our Village Council must be held to the highest of standards when it comes to their voting practices and in their commitment to fulfilling their votes.

With this reasoning, on January 6th, our council must table any vote on the parking garage until the comprehensive traffic study is completed.

Let me explain:

On September 30th, the Village Council voted (4-1) in favor of doing 4 comprehensive studies regarding the high density housing issue.

Clerk Mailander’s vote call: “Amended version that we just read:  multiple studies, traffic and infrastructure study, financial study, and a school impact study.  It’s a comprehensive traffic study as outlined by Councilwoman Knudsen, CBD, surrounding neighborhoods, entire village.  OK.”

Regarding what Councilwoman Knudsen specifically “outlined”:

“There has never been a comprehensive traffic study done of the CBD proper or the adjacent communities as a whole.  It becomes incredibly relevant when we consider that there are four large parcels being considered for high density development with the north walnut redevelopment zone assisted living facility …… and coupled with the fact that we are engaging in ….a parking garage that would add over 300 vehicles to an already narrow, difficult, congested intersection of Broad Street and Hudson.  When you take all of these collectively it really becomes imperative that we do our due diligence and ….get this right….so I think to that question, “What traffic studies have been done?”  I think “not enough.”

Seeking clarification on December 9th, I asked Councilwoman Knudsen if it was her “intent” on September 30th that the parking garage be included in this traffic study before the parking garage was to be built.

Her response:

“My intention was that it was under the assumption that it had not been built…I was clear with that intention..Each of these very large projects combined had the potential impact and needed to be studied before we moved forward.”

Based on Councilwoman Knudsen’s original outline of the traffic part of the vote from September 30th and substantiated by the above statement on December 9th, the Village Council has no further recourse but to table any voting or other steps toward choosing a parking garage size, applying for a bond, etc, until the traffic study is first completed.

Having a few extra months of study with regard to the parking garage will only improve the traffic/parking situation and pave the way for perhaps even smarter solutions. For example, resident Rick Boesch observed that the parking app could be GPS enabled to show the available parking spaces at any given moment,thereby helping the situation immensely.

It is only of benefit to Ridgewood that our Village Council follows through with their vote on September 30thin regards to the proposed parking garage, so as to ensure that development in our CBD is handled in a smarter, less expensive and less piecemeal fashion.

Dana H. Glazer

Ridgewood NJ

 

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Concerns Mount over the Change in Traffic Patter and Loss of On Street Parking Near the New Hudson Garage in Ridgewood

Mount Carmel

December 16,2015
th\e staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, if the new parking lot goes through as designed, they will reverse the traffic patterns on Hudson ad Passaic streets. But more importantly (and this was never mentioned in the impact studies), is that they also plan to remove on-street parking. This will be devastating to Mount Carmel Church and Knights of Columbus .

Also many current Merchants on Broad Street and nearby are going to get hammered all around both before during and after. Many small shops will barely survive in durring the construction and later in the shadow of a garage.

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New Parking App Could Help Ridgewood Shoppers Find Spaces

parkwise

December 15,2015

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, could a new APP now being used in Boston be the answer to Ridgewood’s Parking problems?  According to the news Park Wise App, it’s all in a days work . The Park wise App now available in Boston allows you to view free spots and soon-to-be open spots in your area . It also tracks parking regulations and street cleaning schedules and some would say the best part is it automatically reminds you where you parked .

From their website; ParkWise is a Boston based parking app that alerts users to scheduled street sweeping taking place in their neighborhood, as well as other features like helping them find an open parking spot.

When a driver is looking for a parking spot, ParkWise provides real time information about open parking spots, as well as the location of soon-to-be open spots in the area. Once a driver finds a spot and parks their vehicle, ParkWise will save the location for the driver’s future reference. It will also alert the driver about any upcoming street cleaning scheduled to take place at the parking spot location, or any other restrictions like events and festivals.

ParkWise automatically updates the status of a parking spot for other users. When a driver approaches their vehicle, ParkWisewill automatically alert other drivers in the area about the soon-to-be open spot, and once they drive away, it will be marked as open.

ParkWise aims to create drivers’ communities where neighbors share information about available street parking spots to save time and gas for everyone in the community.

Unlike other parking apps, ParkWise complies with city regulations and does not allow users to sell or hold their spots. We created an app that is fair and legal. All parking spots are first come, first served.

ParkWise currently covers most Boston neighborhoods including Somerville and Cambridge. ( https://www.northendparking.com/ )

So could this be it , a new APP to bring downtown Ridgewood Shoppers into the 21st century ? Certainly it would be far cheaper and faster to roll out  than building a garage .

 

ParkWise helps Boston drivers find empty parking spots

There never seem to be enough parking spaces on Boston’s crowded streets, but a local company is teaming up with an Israeli firm to help drivers hunt them down.

Anagog Ltd.,  of Tel Aviv, uses the location trackers in thousands of smartphones to identify empty parking spots, much the way Google Maps reports on traffic conditions by using GPS to track the speed of smartphones traveling on the same road.

Anagog’s software can tell when a phone is moving at driving speed, when it’s slowed to a walking pace or stopped altogether. When a phone goes from 40 miles per hour down to a dead stop, then starts moving at 5 miles an hour, the software infers that the user was in a car, parked, and got out.

The place where the rapid motion stopped is now identified as a parking space. When the driver returns to his car and pulls away, the increased speed indicates the car has left its space, which is now available to others.

“It is not foolproof, but it certainly gives a level of visibility that is not available today,” said Jake Levant, Anagog’s chief marketing officer.

Anagog’s technology has been embedded into ParkWise, a free parking app developed by StreetInfoTech LLC of Boston, and the companies are currently testing the service in the North End.

https://www.betaboston.com/news/2014/12/15/parkwise-helps-boston-drivers-find-empty-parking-spots/

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Ridgewood Council schedules hearing for parking garage bond

Village Council Meeting

photo by Boyd Loving

DECEMBER 11, 2015    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2015, 12:31 AM
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

The Ridgewood Council on Wednesday unanimously introduced a $12.3 million bond ordinance for the construction of a proposed parking deck at the Hudson Street lot.

A public hearing on the bond ordinance is scheduled for Jan. 6.

Despite the governing body’s full support of the ordinance introduction, two council members expressed their reservations about certain aspects of the parking garage proposal, most notably the lack of a definitive plan.

Councilwoman Susan Knudsen, who was concerned that the public may not know all of the details of the potential parking garage, said that she supported the ordinance introduction “with the understanding that I’m doing a reach out and getting a lot of information and public input as to their understanding of the structure, and making sure the financials are absolutely intact.”

Councilman Michael Sedon also noted his desire for additional information to be distributed among Ridgewood residents and members of the Central Business District (CBD).

“Once a concrete plan is in place with rates and enforcement times, I’d like to go out to send a letter to the business community letting them know exactly what the plan is, so if there are any questions or blowback, we can deal with that beforehand, and not after the fact.”

He further explained his reasons, recalling a Village Council decision several years ago to increase the sewage discharge fees assessed to CBD businesses. According to Sedon, “nobody seemed to know or care about [the fee increase when it was discussed].

“Once the bills hit the mailboxes,” he added, “there were 50 or 60 angry businesses owners here.”

Sedon said he hopes to avoid a repeat occurrence of that.

https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/town-government/hearing-on-bond-scheduled-1.1472043