Sunday, June 22, 2008

Late night meters

Apparently channeling Professor Shoup, Boston City Councilor Sal LaMattina has proposed extending the meter hours to 2 A.M. from the current 8 P.M. end (for meters east of Mass. Ave.). The extra hours will generate an estimated $2 million to the $10 million in city meter collections.

Not unexpectedly, the vice president of the Newbury Street League is worried that extending meter hours will hurt business. But:

Meg Mainzer-Cohen, president of the Back Bay Association, sees it differently.

She believes that extending meter hours to 2 a.m. would benefit businesses because it would allow for more turnover in parking spots at a time of the day when they traditionally have been scarce. "Right now, when the meter goes off, it's like residential parking from that moment until the next morning," she said.

Give that woman a golden parking meter! One for the councilor, too.

No comments: