Central city retailer Bill Campbell is disappointed Tauranga City Council was more interested in hearing from its own staff instead of central business district retailers at this week's parking workshop.
'The meeting from my point of view was all about what the council could get out of the CBD and not what is good about the CBD,” says Bill.
CBD retailer Bill Campbell wants free parking in the city.
'I would have thought they would have listened more to what the public were saying rather than just continuing on with what the council requires, and I'm also surprised the actual meeting was more listening to Martin Parkes.
'They were listening to him and questioning him about what he was going to do and how he was going to go about it.”
Councillors met to discuss the options for parking in the central city at a special workshop on Monday.
At the meeting Bill, owner of Fancy That gift shop, says city transportation manager Martin Parkes appeared to be trying to increase parking revenue by $300,000.
'Martin Parkes is saying it's not about revenue gathering it's about the movement of traffic. But I don't know how another $300,000 of revenue can increase the flow of traffic when there is no traffic to move.”
It was frustrating says Bill, partly because he didn't know what to expect.
'I probably expected more listening and less talk from the council employees,” says Bill.
'It was a long drawn out affair that probably achieved nothing at the end of the day as far as the business side of it was concerned.”
Bill believes the cost of parking is the major reason people are choosing to shop at other centres around Tauranga, instead of the CBD. He remains undeterred in his campaign for free parking in the central city.
His suggestion parking be paid for through a rate on commercial properties did not receive a lot of support at the meeting.
A quick calculation was that it would cost an extra $57 a year for each commercial ratepayer – a figure Bill can live with.
'To me that's just over a dollar a week,” says Bill.
'All they have to do is come into town and park for an hour and they have got their dollar back.
'It's a win/win situation. We get them into CBD, they get their money back and we get a chance to get their custom.
'The CBD can't operate without people coming to the CBD.”
12 comments
As if the retailers aren't self-interested?
Posted on 01-11-2012 09:28 | By Phailed
But that aside Bill's idea of commercial properties paying a parking fee is worth consideration and would parking more on the same basis as the malls. But even simpler would be just lease the whole parking management, fees thing to the retailers association. Meantime with all this negative publicity, who would even consider going downtown?
You really have to wonder.....
Posted on 01-11-2012 09:53 | By Donnaw
what some of these clowns in council with big bright ideas really are thinking, i knew this would happen, parking in Tauranga has always been bad, but bearable, i dont understand why it was, that some "bright spark" thought it was a good idea to get rid of more parking to put in such things as a playground/walkway etc, especially when BOP has become such a busy place, i understand the bus option or walking option, but for most familys its just so much easier to drive. Taking out more parking around the CBD is probally the worst idea council has ever come up with, do they not understand that without parking there will be no shopping? I know personally i totally avoid Tauranga CBD and the only reason being....because its such a hassle to get a park, i feel really sorry for the shop owners paying high rents and not getting people through the doors due to, mainly the lack of parking. There is a beautifull playground at Memorial Park, why couldnt they have focused their so called upgrade there....oh i know why.....because that just makes way too much sense.
Here We Go Again
Posted on 01-11-2012 10:08 | By tabatha
When are these Councillors and workers going to listen to the people who pay their wages (salaries)? Yes revenue has to be generated but downtown needs a new heart and charging people is not how you get it.
What's new?
Posted on 01-11-2012 10:22 | By SpeakUp
Bill says: 'I would have thought they would have listened more to what the public were saying rather than just continuing on with what the council requires...". Hahahahahaaaaaaaa. Well, some take a little longer to comprehend the oligarchic and autocratic scam of council administration. Maybe one day the peasants wake up and say 'Enough is enough! WE ARE the people and we stop voting for a bunch of parasitic crony public servants who couldn't care less about the fare of hard working ratepayers.”
Parking Disappointment
Posted on 01-11-2012 11:56 | By DJP
After having paid my monthly parking fee for parking on the strand I arrive the next morning to find the strand locked off to parking. there is no consideration for any of the business' on the strand. to just suddenlytake their client's parking away not to mention the workers who suddenly have to find alternative Parking. No wonder the city centre is dead.
BILL CAMPBELL IS RIGHT
Posted on 01-11-2012 12:12 | By PLONKER
TCC and its staff do not want any new ideas to get in the way of the predetermined path already choosen. It might create conflict and other really not so good things like having to explain "why".
Staff Audit
Posted on 01-11-2012 16:23 | By Jitter
The sooner the audit of TCC staff is completed the sooner we will get rid of these idiot staff who make decisions without input from the ratepayers who pay their salaries. I cannot see how Martin Parkes thinks that increasing parking revenue by $300,000 PA is going to improve the CBD parking. Parkes must have been instructed by council to increase the parking revenue by this much. We want more shoppers in the CBD not fewer. Currently the CBD is dying due to ridiculous thoughtless council decisions.
sparrow
Posted on 01-11-2012 16:27 | By sparrow
re DJP's comment.I heartily agree with free parking for customers and cheaper perhaps for staff but methinks it would be staff using the free parking and not customers. Why can't council try abolishing parking fees for a trial period and see what happens
They do not
Posted on 01-11-2012 18:04 | By Sambo
give a tos, the T.C.C that is, amazing really, when you look at cities around the world, most have vibrant centres, and green space to lunch and play, what we have is a new foot path along our habour and a heart with a malignant disease, if it was not so sad, you would be laughing at the joke we have become, over it Mr Crosby, on ya bloody bike!!!!!
This
Posted on 01-11-2012 19:55 | By Capt_Kaveman
is why they all need to be booted so come on lets get rid of them all
Hand parking enforcement to Retailers
Posted on 01-11-2012 23:40 | By The Tomahawk Kid
Remove council interference from the CBD and watch it prosper. It is of no concern to the council how many people are driven away, and Im surprised their parking fees are not more than they are. They should hand over the parking enforcement to the retailers and let THEM decide what they want to do - it is their livelihood at stake. Council and parking nazis get paid regardless. Retailers should employ a parking metre angel to walk behind the parking rotweillers and feed the metres of those they ticket. No parking fines would reduce the councils income from this cash cow, and perhaps they would have to lay some of them off (mind you, when has council ever needed to run a profitable department.)
TOMMY
Posted on 03-11-2012 22:06 | By PLONKER
Dreamer mate, the Council's middle name is "interferance by milking the cow to death", like that means they are never going to let go of the parking money and the fines, it keeps a whole lot more over paid officials in a job.
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