Yarraville residents and traders are furious that Maribyrnong council will roll out parking meters next month without promised community consultation.
The council has invited 13 handpicked representatives of interested parties to an “information session” at the end of this month, barely a fortnight before the planned installation of the meters.
Yarraville Says No to Paid Parking convener Megan Darling said the council had broken a clear promise to consult with the community prior to implementation.
“At every point along the way we have been told this was going to be implemented with input from the community,” she said.
“This information session is a box-ticking exercise, not consultation. They clearly have an agenda and are sticking to it.”
Resident Hannah Whitaker said the introduction of paid parking had the potential to devastate the village atmosphere that drew her and many others to the area.
She said council chief executive Stephen Wall promised in a meeting late last year that a proper consultation process would apply before paid parking began.
“He absolutely undertook to undergo community consultation; there was very little room for misunderstanding,” she said. “We asked if the community consultation would be some flimsy thing but were assured it would be thorough, open, honest and transparent.”
Ms Whitaker said the council failed to invite her to the information session until she pointed out the oversight, yet she is unlikely to attend as she expects paid parking to be “steamrolled out” regardless. “They are trying to dress the wolf up in sheep’s clothing,” she said.
Angry residents have been bombarding the council with emails and receiving a standard response from Mr Wall.
It says: “I believe I have been quite clear from the outset that we would discuss the final proposed structure of when pay parking will apply, including the rationale that supports that proposal, prior to implementation.”
Mayor Nam Quach said in May that installation of the meters and informatiom on when paid parking applied would be based on a council survey of parking occupancy and turnover.
The meters are likely to be installed in mid-August.
