By Goya Dmytryshchak
Reduced parking fees and free parking in winter have been mooted by traders in Williamstown’s Nelson Place in a petition tabled at last week’s Hobsons Bay council meeting.
Lead petitioner, marketing director Sash Boseovski, said traders had been suffering too long from the effect of high parking fees for 13 hours a day.
Parking in Nelson Place – the only shopping strip in Hobsons Bay with meters – costs $3.50 per hour and operates from 9am-10pm.
The petition also calls on the council to allocate a marketing budget for Nelson Place from parking revenue, and to hire a consultant to analyse and compare Nelson Place meter fees with similar areas.
“Fitzroy Street, St Kilda, has six months of parking at $1.80 during winter months and six months of parking at $3.80,” Mr Boseovski said.
“When a council can understand the climate, they understand that winter months are a struggle.
“If we’re looking at Nelson Place, Williamstown, being a restaurant precinct and if we’re comparing ourselves to other precincts: Point Cook Town Centre – free parking; Docklands – free parking; Watton Street, Werribee – free parking; Pier Street – free parking.”
Mr Boseovski said high parking fees were deterring people from coming to Williamstown for a coffee, while one restaurateur reportedly “can’t sell a dessert because people are in a hurry to get out” due to parking time restrictions.
In 2015, the council trialled free parking in part of Nelson Place for three months from Monday to Thursday, losing up to $180,000 in estimated parking revenue, excluding fines.
Councillors will receive an officer’s report on the petition for consideration at a future council meeting.
