People are starting to notice that some of the parking meters on Greenwich Avenue are red.
Those are the new 30-minute Express Parking spots, which originated from an idea of the Town’s Parking Services Dept that were presented to the Selectmen back in June.
The rationale was that switching 15-minute parking meters on Greenwich Avenue to 30-minute meters would improve the flow of traffic since a common lament is that people drive around the block multiple times to find a parking spot.
A 30 minute parking spot close to the intersection of Arch and Havemeyer. Sep 14, 2023 Photo: Leslie Yager
At this week’s Selectmen meeting, Deputy Chief Kraig Gray, who heads up the Parking Services Dept, suggested converting five of the long term parking spots in the Grigg Street Municipal Parking Lot to “30 Minutes Maximum Express Parking.”
Grigg Street is a narrow one-way street that comes off Greenwich Avenue opposite Fawcett Place. It has been been plagued by double parking and cars parked on the sidewalk, often food delivery drivers and people picking up a coffee or a pizza.
“I think it will be a positive step toward addressing concerns of residents and merchants in the central Greenwich area, in particular down on Grigg Street,” Deputy Chief Gray said of the new 30 minute spots.
Specifically, five of the 12 hour parking spaces would be converted to 30 minute spots.
“We’re hoping that the benefit will include a reduction in illegal parking,” Gray added.
Though he said most people want to conform with the law, he noted, “Most people don’t park illegally for extended periods of time. They follow the path of least resistance, and park improperly for a few minutes, and figure it is worth the risk.”
Deputy Chief Gray said the proposal was cost effective because operational costs were already built in and the cost to park will remain the same.
“We’re just re-purposing a few meters,” he continued, noting that while the the total capacity of parking in the area would remain unchanged, altering usage would hopefully increase turnover.
“We go from one customer every two hours to four customers every two hours,” he said.
Gray noted that the Grigg Street municipal lot is at the bottom of a slope from Greenwich Avenue, which might not be ideal for people who have mobility challenges.
However, he said people without mobility challenges might use the Grigg Street 30 minute spots and free up spaces for people with mobility challenges who need to park closer to their destination.
Selectwoman Lauren Rabin noted there is an alley that is a shortcut from the parking lot to Grigg Street that is less steep.
Additionally, he said that as “Express Parking” was also being added to Bruce Park Ave and Railroad Ave, parking enforcement officers are instructed to monitor them for meter feeding.
“For express parking you need to get in and get out,” he said. “Of course, 15 minutes is acceptable. Five minutes is acceptable. Thirty-five minutes is not.”
The issue of illegal parking came up at the May 25 Selectmen meeting. Residents testified that residents and food delivery workers double park and park on the sidewalk in front of residential housing to quickly pick up food from eateries on Grigg Street an Greenwich Ave.
Grigg Street is a narrow one-way street that comes off Greenwich Avenue and connects to Arch Street. There are two 15-minute parking spots in front of 1 Grigg Street, but cars are often parked in them much longer, and other cars double-park next to them, blocking the flow of traffic.
First Selectman Fred Camillo said he had met with residents and merchants of Grigg Street who were please with the measures taken there, though some are temporary.
“We think this will help that business and other businesses (whose customers) go in and out for a coffee or a book. “It should help.”
New Spots in front of Richards
On a related note, DC Gray said that although parking is finite on Greenwich Avenue, he was pleased to have been able to create five spots in front of Richards, including a ADA space that is accessible to a van. That spot is the last in the row of diagonal parking, and allows for access with a wheelchair straight to the crosswalks.
He noted these spots were made possible after the Postal Service reoriented the blue mailbox bin at the corner of Greenwich Ave and Fawcett Place. (It is no longer possible to drive along the curb to access the mailbox from a car.)
In addition to three new 2-hour parking spots, there is a 30 minute spot (red meter) and the van accessible handicapped spot.
Future Additional Parking
At the Selectmen meeting First Selectman Fred Camillo said that while there no appetite for building a parking garage per se, he had a meeting with property owners on Greenwich Avenue about parking in the area.
“Tomorrow we’re going to be meeting with a private party just to give him an idea what we’re thinking, and put more feelers out there — just to get some ideas about the surface parking lots we have to see how we can get more parking without building ugly, stand alone structures.”
Last July, Greenwich Ave retail merchant Tory Lenzo of Blankenship Dry Goods urged the Selectmen to create tiered parking and noted the structures did not have to be ugly.
Mr. Camillo said that in the past residents had balked at the idea of parking garages, but agreed they might be done tastefully, especially if built into the existing grade. He noted that was done at town hall.
“We have an idea about building into the grade or underneath by the Board of Education (the Havemeyer building at 290 Greenwich Ave). Where the baseball field is, you can probably get a lot of spaces there, and it’s right there by Greenwich Avenue,” Camillo said.
See also:
Greenwich Selectmen Asked to Get Grigg Street Double-Parking Under Control May 31, 2023
Express Short-Term Parking for 30-Minute Parking on Greenwich Ave Under Consideration June 21, 2023
See also:
Greenwich Selectmen Asked to Get Grigg Street Double-Parking Under Control