Those red 20-minute meters that line the southern end of Washington Street will be soon be a thing of the past. At the last council meeting, the city’s governing body unanimously approved an ordinance to replace the 20-minute meters with two-hour meters.
The thinking behind the move, said Hoboken Parking Utility Head John Corea, it to create some level of uniformity throughout the city. Also, by giving parkers two hours, they will have time to shop or eat dinner while in Hoboken.
Currently, meters run between 20 and 90 minutes, and prices vary from 25 cents for 20 minutes, while others are 25 cents for 45 minutes. Now by Jan.1, all parking in metered spaces will be limited to two hours and each 15-minute interval will cost 25 cents.
Armando Luis, the president of the Brass Rail, La Isla and Sparrow’s Wine & Liquor Company, said the removing the red meters is “a good first step.”
“This is the main impediment to attracting shoppers and diners to Hoboken,” said Luis to the council. “The reason we are not getting more business, is, simply put, parking.” He added that 20 minutes certainly is not enough time for the average shopper or a family that comes from out of town to have dinner.
He urged the council to take it further in the future and raise the rates of the meters even more. He said only by raising meter prices will local employees be motivated to park elsewhere, like in a garage.
But Hoboken resident and political figure Michael Lenz said removing the red meters isn’t the solution, and that it will only make the problem of employees feeding the meter worse. “I think it’s a terrible idea,” said Lenz. “I think it would be wise to increase the number of red meters instead of decreasing them.”