See - THIS is what's wrong with the City of Regina Executive at City Hall (and City Council). A month into the increased parking fines, and just because the numbers don't satisfy their assertions, they claim that "more study is needed". BULLSHIT. You've just issued over 1,000 MORE tickets at double the rate. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out the conclusion here. More enforcement - higher fines -> NOT a deterrent - completely a revenue generator. It's high time to implement some truly viable solutions - like how about 100% FREE on street parking City wide, with a two or three hour limit in the downtown core to allow for customers of businesses to actually find spots hassle free. What's that? Downtown workers will just take advantage of that. No - they will not. When you actually have viable off-street alternatives for them to park - multi-level parkades - then, check this out, they won't park on street! And IF THEY DO then they deserve to get tickets.
It's high time to make the entire City a level playing field for all businesses - regardless of where they are located. Eventually this will provide a truly viable solution. What's that? How the hell do we fund a masive parkade? Well, consider the fact that, currently, a majority of the revenues realized from parking meters - archaic as they are - are offset by the expenses of salaried staff to enforce said archaic parking meters. Add to the fact that the Regina Downtown BID is funded primarily through a levy imposed on Downtown area businesses, and how you can actually use those funds for good, instead of providing salaries for more individuals to milk off the public tit, and the fact that there are Provincial and Federal monies available for truly essential infrastructure projects, and it comes together quite nicely.
Get ready Regina. THIS WILL HAPPEN.
Either in 2016 when a
new City Council is elected, or earlier, when the current City Council
is forced out of office.
"We're a little too early in the fine increase to see if there has been a deterrent in the number of people parking illegally, how much extra revenue we can generate by gouging the taxpayers even harder without actually providing them any tangible solutions. Also, free parking wouldn't help the Hills in any way whatsoever. Forget the small businesses!" CITY OF REGINA
"...probably at the end of three to maybe four months, we're going to sit down and do a comparison" - Really? Let's see any private business operate this way, and see just how long they last. How hard is it to analyze data, that you allegedly need to wait months to "sit down and compare".
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