St. John's council to vote Monday on court parking fee increase
Councillor says city is 'in control' on issue
St. John's City Council will vote Monday on a recommendation to increase how much the Justice and Public Safety department pays for reserved spots outside the Supreme Court.
The move is being brought forward by Coun. Jonathan Galgay, who thinks the city is missing out on thousands of dollars in revenue by not charging as much as they should for the spots.
Initially, Galgay had proposed taking away the reserved status on the 21 spots, making them open to the general public.
Following that proposal, the Department of Justice and Public Safety responded, saying there would be potential safety issues for judges and other court staff,
City in control
Galgay said the Department of Justice and Public Safety currently pays the city about $1,500 a year for each of the reserved parking spots.
He said the average income that St. John's brings in for a metered spot downtown is quite a bit more than that — about $2,600 a year.
He feels it's time the city stop giving the province a break on the rate.
"The provincial government does not pay taxes to the city," he said.
Galgay said the city loses out on about $80,000 a year by not charging the full amount for the 21 parking spots.
"I can certainly find many areas where we could use $80,000", he said.
"One of which would be to ensure that young children that utilize our swimming facilities in the summer would have access to fee recreation in the City of St. John's."
Fair balance
Galgay insists the city understands the security argument, but he feels the city is justified in looking at charging more for the spaces.
"This is all about finances," he said.
"It's all about ensuring the City of St. John's receives a fair balance, in terms of revenue associated with metered parking."
Council will vote on the matter on Feb 9.