No Parking In The Same Lot 2x In One Day? Newton Council To Vote

NEWTON, MA — The Newton City Council is scheduled to vote on proposed new overtime parking regulations Monday, April 2 that appears to mean anyone who parked at the same meter or even the same municipal parking lot twice in the same day could get a ticket.

The Newton-Needham Chamber of Commerce members say they're concerned that the new rules could be bad for business in Newton and possibly even dissuade some businesses from starting up in Newton.

The proposed new rule reads this way:

“No person shall park a vehicle within a designated metered parking space or
in a parking space within a time-restricted area for a longer consecutive period
than the time limit specified or beyond the hours specified. Vehicles must be
moved to a location beyond the nearest intersection or to a location outside an
off-street municipal parking lot upon or before the expiration of the posted
time limit, and may not return the same day.”

Traffic and Transportation Division staff say the language makes the policy more clear about why and how someone can get the $15 fee for overstaying a meter or overstaying a parking zone.

"The current ordinance does not appear to clearly define overtime parking in Newton, and there is no current consensus in terms of what constitutes a 'parking meter zone', particularly since a new system of zones was created to support the launch of the Passport Parking application in the City. Finally, there does not appear to be specific language in the City ordinance related to violations for overtime parking in non-metered

on-street or off-street areas of the City. The proposed language, show below again, aims to clarify the rules for the general public," reads a memo from Transportation Division officials.

Transportation officials compare Newton's language, fine and requirements with Brookline ( which notes folks have to move to another street if they're parked in a 2 hr parking zone, after 2 hrs or risk getting a ticket), Boston, Waltham and Cambridge.

The president of the chamber, Greg Reibman, sent a letter to the City Council outlining the Chamber's concerns with adding that last line to the policy, urging councilors to vote no on the proposed change.

"As proposed, it would appear that the owner of a vehicle who would park their car in the Langley Lot to have breakfast at Johnny's Luncheonette would not be allowed to return to the lot later that same day to take their kids for ice cream [at] J.P. Licks. Or a patient whose dentist was running behind schedule in West Newton, could not run out to their meter (or use the Passport app) to add an extra half hour to their stay," he wrote.

And that, he wrote, would send an the message that Newton is hostile to local businesses and could discourage folks from shopping and dining in the city.

Reibman and the chamber are asking folks to urge the council to vote against the rule Monday night.

Stay tuned.

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File Photo by Jenna Fisher/Patch