Politics & Government

Chappaqua Merchants Get More Parking Permits than Available Spots

Since a fee for acquiring parking permits was dropped two years ago, the number given to merchants in downtown Chappaqua has soared, even going beyond the total number of spots allotted for businesses.

New Castle Town Clerk Jill Shapiro, who informed the town board about the gap at its July 2 work session, said that 337 permits were given for merchants in 2012, a number that exceeded the amount of available parking spots.

“So we already are beyond capacity for what we can accommodate," Shapiro said.

Downtown Chappaqua has a total of just 134 spots for merchants to use, Shapiro told the board. This includes 76 spots that can be used for merchants or customers, and 65 that are only for merchants.

The number has been above the 300 mark for two years in a row, a change that started in 2011 when New Castle dropped a $150-per-permit fee in order to comply with easements that it agreed to with several South Greeley Avenue property owners as part of a major overhaul to the parking lot behind the street. Before the change, less than 200 permits were given out annually.

“I don't think anyone anticipated that ballooning number when we went from one to the other," Shapiro said.

Requests for 2013 are still coming in, Shapiro said, adding that 260 were already made.

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Merchants also face a per-business cap of seven permits, although in response to a question asked, it was explained that the number could be changed.

Even with the gap, merchants do not use their permits all at once. Shapiro noted that permits could be used by people with staggered hours or part-time shifts. Supervisor Susan Carpenter stated that some merchant spots located in the back of the South Greeley often appear to be empty.

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Shapiro, along with some board members, expressed interest in doing away with the remaining merchant-only spots and coverting them to a hybrid of merchant/customer usage.

Councilman Robin Stout was open to the possibility to charging again for merchants who are not affected by the easement deal.

“We got something in consideration from one group and not from another," he said, referencing the easements, which affect some South Greeley merchants.

Talk also focused on comparisons with how train station-area commuter parking permits are issued, which represents a similar situation because more are given out than the number of available spaces. Shapiro suggested that a first-come, first-serve basis could be used for merchants, which is done for commuters. Councilman Jason Chapin suggested having a lottery, which has been done for non-resident parking permits.

Another idea raised is to implement a tiered system, where New Castle would continue to issue free permits within a cap but then charge for requests that go above it. What remaining authority that the town possess to charge for permits appears to be a topic for discussion with Town Attorney Clinton Smith.

A representative from Wells Fargo, a bank with a presence on South Greeley Avenue, suggested issuing permits based on the number of full-time employees that a company has. The employee, who declined to give her name, noted the large number of people that her company has, and felt that to have the same number of permits that can be acquired regardless of size is “not equitable.”

Some board members were receptive to looking at employee headcount as a figure, with the possibility to surveying merchants to attain the data discussed.

Another possible measure that could be taken is to encourage merchants to use on-street parking along North Greeley Avenue in an area near the Chappaqua Post Office and the Chappaqua Volunteer Ambulance Corps (CVAC). More than 10 spots could be used for the purpose, according to Shapiro, and the idea may get further discussion.

Even with restructuring, it appears that Chappaqua is lacking for sufficient spaces. When Chapin asked Shapiro about how many spaces the town is short for in terms of customers and merchants, she replied that the number is probably 150.


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