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Parking meters now installed, to operate soon
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Posted on Mar 02 2006
At least 57 parking meters have been installed along Beach Road and Garapan streets and are set to operate soon.
Maeda Corp., the contractor hired by the Department of Public Works for the parking meter project, said that 27 parking meters have been installed along Hotel Street and Coral Avenue, while 30 are along Beach Road in Garapan.
Maeda president and general manager Thomas J. Nielsen said his office has not been informed yet by DPW as to when they will start making the parking meters operational.
Right now, cars and other vehicles may park for free along the curbs where the newly installed meters are.
Nielsen said the parking meters would allow fair parking for everyone because it would also eliminate the parking by employees and owners of establishments in Garapan who, he said, take up the parking spaces along the streets most of the time. These owners and employees of establishments should give way to paying customers, he added.
DPW would still have to formulate the payment scheme for the parking meters.
“They haven’t set the rates yet,” Nielsen said.
In his opinion, 25 cents per 15 minutes or $1 per hour would be a fair fee for CNMI motorists.
He said parking meter fees are much higher in most U.S. states but the department would have to consider the financial capability of CNMI motorists.
The contractor said DPW would have to send two of its staff for training in Arkansas on how to effectively and efficiently use the parking meters.
