A possible solution to the parking meters

If there is one thing Hamtramckans can agree on, it is that the Jos. Campau parking meters are terrible.
Many folks find the meter system confusing, at least, and oftentimes not even working properly. And people complain bitterly about getting tickets they don’t think were justified.
On top of this, store owners here say they have lost a substantial number of customers and revenue.
Hamtramck is not alone in this complaint. Royal Oak has the same kind of system, and shoppers and store owners there complain just as bitterly about it.
Recently, the mayor and city council are saying the city won’t renew its contract with the meter company.
However, that would result in a loss of over $250,000 a year in revenue.
Our question then becomes, how will the city absorb this financial hit? Some dismiss the revenue collection as small change in the bigger financial picture, but we fail to see it that way.
Perhaps there is another way to look at this.
Look no further than the parking meter system in Ferndale, where the meters are easy to operate. You don’t hear complaints about those meters.
The point is, the city could swap out this meter system with one that is customer-friendly, and which would still provide needed revenue.
There is plenty of time to fix this problem, but completely eliminating parking meter revenue is not responsible.
Posted June 7, 2024