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February 12,2017
Reader recounts his shopping experience to the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, My wife and I arrived at cottage place around 11:30 Saturday and noticed non-employee parking
Was at about 90 percent empty.The employee parking section was likely At 15 percent max.used.
we were at bookstore ..the Gap and rite aid.
And it was still too early for the movie crowd. The Bookstore was light and the gap had some customers there.
Assuming that 80 percent or more of the employees were signed in midday at work..likely more using
Street and metered parking since they arrive early to mid-morning on most pre holiday Saturday’s.
The high percentage of employee parking that goes unused is a joke.both to town visitors
( that seems to be the merchants target audience ) as the pass holders and locals are just assumed to
be robots on cruise control for 30 % plus percent train pass increases at the station and less supply
In the general boarding commuter allocated lots down the street away from the train area.
Seriously what is so hard to figure out.
The town clearly wants to ticket blitz the visitors..
Who can’t read a 3.5 foot poll that the front of their car blocks.
No sympathy requested, but do the merchants really think this is the master plan to their volume issues .if the permit holders got the shaft after the late 2016 parking reimagined strategy.
You would hope that looking rows of unused employee parking spots on a high revenue pre-valentines Saturday might open up a few imaginations as to how?
The merchants in supporting such a poorly planned solution are getting little out of the pie on an Important pre-holiday shopping weekend.
At a minimum employee, only Saturday parking spots should
be eliminated..commuters still got screwed but at least we could see that the VOR PARKING emperors have no clothes .
The whole thing is a failure .great for the violations bureau.That will teach them to dare come to
Ridgewood to spend their gifting money and perhaps stop for a book or coffee/lunch while walking the
Avenue .We a floundering Folks.
Don’t forget your valentine.
My friend went to park at one of the lots that require an app and was unable to download so couldn’t use the lot. She said the lot was mostly empty and also that there was a fee to use the app. I think the VC made these parking rules so complicated now people are just staying away. I’m not aware that merchants supported this plan. I think the new VC came in with ideas of how to “fix” parking and this is the result. I’m sure merchants would rather have seen a parking garage. Good luck. I stay out of downtown altogether now.
Question :who supports the Status quo ? Outside the ticket police revenue fiends and their revenue hack managers ticketing mainly visitors….
Comment at 10:12 makes it clear how difficult it is for information to spread. The app-fueled parking meters have always required a 35-cent surcharge over the meter fee, and of course the surcharge could easily soar. I will never use them even if I get a smartphone, which is unlikely. I’ll pay to park but I won’t pay some outside company for the privilege. Yes, this is a Sonenfeld Special. I’d like ParkMobile to be shown the door. If people can’t manage to keep a little bag or container of quarters in their car, too bad.
It’s over people…it ended long ago. Parking apps? Not going to happen especially when you want me to pay a surcharge. Are you kidding me? Paying to park so I can eat, drink or in general spend $$ in the CBD is absolutely absurd. Does anyone know how many different choices are out there competing for my dollars? Does anyone in their right mind think that half of the crap that goes on around here is moving anything in a positive direction??? Incredibly incompetent VC…Again. – property taxes completely out of hand – PD-FD-Municipal unions gouging the residents at every turn – 100 Million Dollar school budget – the list goes on.