Doesn't it really depend on the income level of the business's in a city with a parking issue? Downtown AP isn't exactly a high income earning area, so it's not easy to compare it to places like NYC, Jersey City or others. Those are full on cities. AP is only a city by name and it's primarily residential. I don't have all of the answers, but I can honestly say that as a downtown employee, I've heard nothing but negative talk since parking went into effect. As I've said before, I ride my bike most of the time. Yesterday, it rained so I drove. I'm on a very tight budget. After a year and a half of unemployment, I returned to the work force making approx. half of what I made previously. I went from 70k a year to 38k. Every penny counts. Lot's of people are in the same boat as me. Perhaps the problem is mixing residential and business? Maybe paid parking could have been avoided if they simply enforced the 2 hour parking areas. All I know is residents aren't happy about having to park blocks away from their homes. If you go grocery shopping and live on Cookman, imagine walking blocks with your load of groceries, or making multiple trips. Downtown AP is full of musicians. Imagine trying to get your drums, or guitar or bass and your amp to your car blocks away, or not having a place in the evening to pull up to to load your car? That's what I'm hearing about every day. I work in an office filled with AP musicians, and I work at The Saint, where people are totally unhappy with the city at this time. It's easy to see things thru rose colored glasses where restaurant patrons are now happy and avoid thinking about the people that the parking issue has effected. If the city were smart (which they are not and history supports that) they would have done more research, run a trial with simulated paid parking, and study the seasonal nature as it relates to business in AP.
--- In [email protected], cbrianwatkins@... wrote: > > I don't know of many places located in a downtown city area where parking is > free for employees, my company offers discounted parking for $380 a month > now, and that's discounted > > Let's take away the meters...... if every parking spot is filled by employees > and residents on Cookman, do you think its right to ask a patron to park > blocks away to do their shopping? > > Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry > > -----Original Message----- > From: "Hinge" <hinge98@...> > Sender: [email protected] > Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2011 14:53:51 > To: <[email protected]> > Reply-To: [email protected] > Subject: [AsburyPark] Re: 2003 > > The bottom line in my opinion is people coming to the downtown area to eat > are happy to find open parking spaces, but the reality is that during working > hours, downtown has become a ghosttown, and tons of people aren't happy about > it. The city has basically said screw you to employees and residents. Same > thing that happened in my neighborhood. > I think the America's Cup guy is reluctant to admit that his own push for > paid parking has had a detrimental effect on his business. > I work on Bond Street. Every employee at my company refused to buy a parking > pass. In this economy, adding what amounts to another tax on your income > simply isn't a good idea. Not only that, but I believe that if you buy the > employee parking pass, you still have to park blocks away from where you > work. Correct me if I'm wrong about that one. Then, if you get somebody like > me, who now has to pay to park in front of his home and works downtown, you > are screwed. How is this helping residents and employees? > > --- In [email protected], Claire Davids <claire.davids@> wrote: > > > > Take the conversation further with the Americas Cup owner though, my husband > > and i spoke to him last saturday for a while about parking and at that > > point he was very happy with the paid parking, even if business is down he > > sees it as a huge benefit in the long term, plus you can't gauge business > > being down, there are now 3 coffee shops downtown (if you include the gelato > > place), maybe that's why business is down, we don't drink enough coffee to > > support 3 coffee shops. maybe now there's parking people will come from > > neighbouring towns for coffee. there are way too many variables at play to > > blame it one just one thing. > > > > > > > > On Fri, Oct 28, 2011 at 10:37 AM, Hinge <hinge98@> wrote: > > > > > ** > > > > > > > > > Yesterday morning, I stopped at America's Cup for a bagel. Totally dead > > > compared to before parking went into effect. I overheard a conversation > > > with > > > the owner saying that business is down big time. Same thing with Russo > > > Music. They are saying that they had the worst week of business since they > > > opened. > > > > > > --- In [email protected], "Hinge" <hinge98@> wrote: > > > > > > > > Meanwhile, several of the business's that lobbied for paid parking are > > > stating that business has gone downhill since it went into effect. > > > > There's also unhappy people north of the parking zone in the residential > > > neighborhoods. Scores of employee's who are not willing to pay to park are > > > now parking in those areas. It really gets bad when the school in that > > > neighborhood gets out. There used to be open parking for people to stop > > > and > > > wait for their kids, now it's become a log jam that did not exist before. > > > > Also, there were 3 break in's this past week, 2 on Mattison and 1 on > > > Cookman. > > > > > > > > --- In [email protected], Claire Davids <claire.davids@> wrote: > > > > > > > > > > I'm with you, I avoided too - now i don't avoid, i think it's great > > > that i > > > > > can find parking. If you talk to some of the retailers they're happy > > > about > > > > > the parking situation and it has increased business for them. There > > > > > are > > > > > always going to be complainers, it's human nature, if it wasn't > > > > > parking > > > > > they'd be complaining about the roadworks, or the weather or the > > > something > > > > > else, something else. > > > > > > > > > > On Fri, Oct 28, 2011 at 9:32 AM, fancypaaantz <fancypaaantz@>wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > ** > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > I came in 2004, America's Cup was not here until much later. In > > > > > > 2004, > > > there > > > > > > was Harry's Roadhouse, Rock Paper Scissors, Be Green and Janet's > > > boutique on > > > > > > Cookman, with a few other things. When did America's Cup open? 2008? > > > When I > > > > > > first moved here, I just parked on Lake bc there was always parking > > > over > > > > > > there at that time. > > > > > > > > > > > > Quite honestly, I kind of avoided Cookman BC of the parking > > > > > > situation > > > in > > > > > > more recent years. I could never find a spot and I find that > > > > > > annoying > > > if I > > > > > > just want to run in somewhere for something quick. So, I think it > > > really > > > > > > cuts both ways. > > > > > > > > > > > > --- In [email protected], cbrianwatkins@ wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Where were these patrons (that are suddenly gone from the > > > > > > > downtown) > > > > > > parking before the meters went into effect? > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry > > > > > > > > > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > > > > > > > From: Dennis Dubrow <traderdube@> > > > > > > > Sender: [email protected] > > > > > > > Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2011 08:42:37 > > > > > > > To: <[email protected]> > > > > > > > Reply-To: [email protected] > > > > > > > Subject: [AsburyPark] 2003 > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Asbury is a ghost town, I spoke to a number of Cookman retailers, > > > > > > business is down since the meters went into effect. It reminds me of > > > 8 years > > > > > > ago when we bulls some stores and rented them, then America's cup > > > opened and > > > > > > we sat there waiting for a customer to come in...and waited and > > > waited and > > > > > > waited. The merchants that are still there, and almost all the > > > current > > > > > > merchants are hard working business people, not weekend warriors > > > looking for > > > > > > a tax write off by opening a store...and then never opening. The > > > > > > high > > > taxes, > > > > > > the extraordinary cost of opening a business in AP, and now the > > > parking > > > > > > meters that don't even work are a detriment to downtown Asbury in a > > > huge > > > > > > way. Occupay AP should be railing against this travesty of a money > > > grab by > > > > > > the powers that be in city hall. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AsburyPark/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AsburyPark/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! 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