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Como Getting Meters

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The idea of placing parking meters along North Boulevard was brought before council this summer by Patrick Ranahan, a North Boulevard resident.

“While I’m in favor of growing the businesses in town and making more parking available to tourists and visitors in commercial areas, I feel to a certain degree that parts of Lake Como have become Belmar’s parking lot,” Mr. Ranahan told the council in July.

He said the borough does not benefit in any way from the neighboring borough’s $3.5 million in beach utility revenue and people coming to the beach in Belmar avoid paying parking costs by parking in Lake Como.

Mr. Ranahan said he has lived in the borough for more than a decade and believes the parking situation in residental neighborhoods is getting worse. He cited his observations during this year’s July 4 weekend.

“On North Boulevard along, I counted 140 cars parked,” Mr. Ranahan said, noting many of the visitors left trash around the area, as well.

Currently, Belmar charges $2 an hour to park, and Mr. Ranahan estimated that if Lake Como were to do the same, the borough could generate about $1,680 a day.

“The town could use the revenue,” Mr. Ranahan said. “Belmar charges $2 an hour to park — that’s on top of their beach badges,”

I still think that if Belmar thinks that it can take beach money because it gets crowded here, then Lake Como has just as much claim to the money.  They’re crowded because of the same beach.

Here’s something else I found interesting:

According to a survey performed by the borough, which polled 153 residents, a majority of residents are in favor of paid parking via pay stations along North Boulevard. 52 percent of residents are in favor of paid parking stations, not actual paid meters, while 48 percent are not in favor of the stations.

Como performed a public opinion survey about parking?  Are they going to do one about the policing takeover, a much more important issue and one that effects every resident of the Borough?  I would think that they probably will if they did one about parking meters.

Belmar should do one too but of course it won’t.

6 Comments

  1. Guest wrote:

    Belmar charges $2 an hour on the beachfront. Lake como plans to charge $2 an hour and have people walk 1/2 mile…greedy. If you don’t want people coming to your town then keep it up. Your off to a good start.

    Sunday, February 7, 2016 at 9:53 am | Permalink
  2. Anonymous wrote:

    1/2 mile to Djais? not the beach?

    Sunday, February 7, 2016 at 11:27 am | Permalink
  3. ALLTRUMPEDUP wrote:

    Lake Como, a sad state of affairs. The governing body should be ashamed of themselves for “punishing” the Belmar beachgoers by charging for parking but yet are on their knees asking for the Belmar residents to sacrifice their levels of service and safety they now receive from their Police Dept. to bail them out on the Police Services request. Are parking fees really going to solve Lake Como’s years of shortsightedness and poor planning? Why not put up toll gates at each end of Main St.? And I am willing to pay for parking in Lake Como to do…. What????? People, you need to attract tourists, and businesses, and shops, and restaurants and such…… then… maybe then… you could consider another non-sense nuisance tax (parking meters). Who elected your officials, perhaps out-of-townwers that registered to vote at BarA. And why is your financial administrator still employed there? Did she really wake up in Oct. and realize they would be $600k short for 2016? Unbelievable. RAISE PROPERTY TAXES, your rate is low by Belmar standards. Keep some dignity.

    Sunday, February 7, 2016 at 12:44 pm | Permalink
  4. Guest wrote:

    I can’t stand metered parking. I quit going to asbury park and red bank because of it. Lake Como is next.

    Sunday, February 7, 2016 at 2:47 pm | Permalink
  5. Anonymous wrote:

    NH no beer offered 2 days before the primary.

    Sunday, February 7, 2016 at 7:53 pm | Permalink
  6. Shaking My Head wrote:

    How about charging for the runs (5K’s) that go through Lake Como – they have to put extra police officers on to help with traffic – put some of the cost on the organization holding the event. This would decrease some of the police department expense.

    Monday, February 8, 2016 at 11:43 am | Permalink

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