Hands off two hours’ free parking in central Hamilton
Monday, 20 November 2023
The people and businesses of Hamilton CBD have spoken: hands off our two hours’ free parking.
Every shopper and almost all businesses the Waikato Times spoke to during a whip around the CBD were against the idea that punters may soon have to pay, especially if they won’t be using the whole hour.
Inner city shopper Rana Randhawa, for instance, said it only takes him two minutes to grab a coffee.
“The two hours free is really handy for that - I’m not going to pay for an hour’s parking just for two minutes.”
The issue has grabbed people’s attention since an option was tabled during Long Term Plan discussions to remove free parking as a cash-strapped city council works to get its books in shape. A petition has even been set up to protest the change.
Two hours free was introduced in 2018 as a way to lure shoppers back who had left for free parking consumer mecca The Base.
Many businesses agreed that small tasks in town hardly ever take an entire hour.
Monique Pawley from BaberShopCo said people don’t tend to stay for the whole two hours, “it’s constantly switching”.
“Even Chartwell has three hours free parking, so if we have nothing to offer in town, why would people want to come here?”
Kanik Chawla from Shosha Victoria St said his customers use the parks in a similar way.
“Sometimes shoppers need to go somewhere for 20 minutes, and if they have to pay an hour’s parking, they won’t be happy about it.
“Many shoppers already go to The Base and Chartwell because of the parking.”
The concern that customers would take their business to Te Rapa or Chartwell was confirmed by CBD shoppers the Times spoke to.
“If it stops being free, I’ll be going to the base”, said shopper Deidre Robinson.
“The cost of living is the thing that everyone is dealing with. I was at the supermarket yesterday and kept over-hearing conversations about how tough it is.”
Currently, parking is free for up to three hours at Chartwell, and completely free at The Base.
Brent Hughes at The Grumpy Baker is, well, grumpy about the situation.
“I mean, I thought they were trying to get people back into the CBD, not push them out,” he said. “It’s ridiculous. And the money they would save is like nothing. So we’re pretty annoyed.
“Here we are just getting out of Covid and now they’re taking the parking away”.
One shopper, Paora Te Wao, pointed out that disabled shoppers such as himself would suffer from the suggested change.
“I’ve got a disability parking card, but most of the time the disabled parks are taken up. Because of my disability, I can’t walk very far. So I utilise the two hour free parking.
“I don’t think the money they say they would save is anywhere near enough to justify taking it away. Why take something away that’s working?”
The council would only be saving around $215,000 a year, due to the predicted drop in CBD rates, drop in parking space occupancy, and consultation costs for the change. Most shoppers in the CBD said it’s not nearly enough to justify the change.
Even if they save money, shopper Vanessa Brown said the council “just wastes money elsewhere”.
“I think removing free parking is a dumb, dumb, dumb idea. The reason people come to the inner city is because of the two hours.
“Anything that gets people into the CBD even for a short time needs to be continued and rewarded”.
Pawley from BarberShopCo agreed. “I don’t even think they’ll make that money, because people will stop coming here.”
There were, however, a few businesses that didn’t seem bothered by the potential change.
“I get the free parking but, put it this way, parking was always free on Sunday, so if parking was the big thing, Sunday would be the biggest day but it’s not”, said Chris Lander at MK1 Comics.
“I don’t think it’ll be the end of things.”
Sharon Smith from Gailers Cake Kitchen said the free parks have done her no favours.
“Down this end of town, when there was free parking before the gym moved here it was fine. But now that the gym’s here, all the gym people use all the free parking.”
She said her customers have nowhere to park due to this. She’s tired of watching the council make bad decisions, she said.
“I’ve been here for 30 years. The council is just killing the city,” said Smith.
“It’s a joke”.
Many CBD businesses are already struggling.
Contractor Charles Conrad has watched many business diappear in the past decade, expecially with the pendemic.
“As a contractor I absolutely hate the idea [of two hours free being revoked]. I’m literally in and out in half an hour, so it would suck if I had to pay.”
At the end of the day, the decision is for council to make, and deputy mayor Angela O’Leary seems convinced.
“It’s time to look at paid parking for the CBD”, she said.