In an effort to raise revenue, the Village of Hiram is investigating the potential of enacting public parking fees on Village-owned streets. According to Council President Chris Szell, “Revenues aren’t keeping pace with expenditures.”
At a public forum that was recently held, Szell noted, “Council is exploring ways to increase the Village’s General Fund.” He noted that increases in medical premiums and salary increases for Village employees, as well as aging infrastructure and inflation have created urgency on the matter. In addition, the reduction in money received from the Local Government Fund has adversely affected the Village, who saw a reduction from 3.68% to 1.66%.
Noting that public parking is an asset the Village must maintain, Szell explained, “As President of Council and Head of the Finance Committee, I can’t ignore this option.” At the public meeting, those in attendance were able to learn about a program under consideration through Parking By Phone (PBP). The company’s sales representative Teresa Trussell shared that the company provides the tools for communities to collect parking fees using their smart phone app or online portal. The company is wholly owned by Volkswagen Financial Services, and according to Trussell, has over 60 million users around the world and across the country. Locally, the Village of Peninsula has contracted with PBP.
Public comments slanted in opposition to such a program, with one resident commenting on the number of signs that would be posted, noting, “This is my home, I don’t want it to look like a parking lot.” Hiram College President David Haney noted that the program makes sense in Peninsula where local businesses experience parking problems for customers during the highly visited spring, summer and fall months. “Hiram College provides paid parking for students and free parking for staff on campus.” Haney noted that many used free Village parking spots as a convenience and speculated that use would decline if parking fees and potential fines were incurred. No decision was made at the public meeting; Council will discuss the matter further at the next Council meeting, which takes place on Tuesday, May 9th at 7 pm.
In other news, Hiram Village clean up takes place on Saturday, May 6th. Pickup begins at 7 am and continues through noon; materials set out after the Kimble truck passes will be left on the curb. Lastly, it was noted that effective immediately the Village of Hiram mailing address changed to the Village’s physical address: 11617 Garfield Road, Hiram OH 44234-3407. Mail addressed to the Village’s P.O. Box 65 will be forwarded until June 11th.
The next regularly scheduled Council meeting will take place on Tuesday, May 9th at 7 pm; residents are encouraged to attend.
