When Barbara Kaplan and her husband were running late for a movie at Bow Tie Cinema in Roslyn, the couple searched for a parking space.
While a spot was quickly found, a parking meter machine to pay for the spot was not.
Kaplan, a Roslyn Chamber of Commerce board member, said they scurried from one meter to another only to find the first three out of service before finding a working parking meter machine, then trekking back to the car to put the ticket on the dashboard before heading to the movie.
“People have been complaining about just how diligent the person who tickets has been — for example, if you are touching or are over the line,” Kaplan said. “That is annoying, but this is inexcusable. Either properly maintain them, take them down or reduce the number of hours they are being enforced.”
Tickets are required to be on display from the windshield between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. seven days a week for parking in the lot on Old Northern Boulevard as well as the parking spaces along the road.
Kaplan said after sending multiple messages to the village, she has not heard back on a plan for fixing the broken machines.
The village has three machines in the parking lot and four more along Old Northern Boulevard. The first 10 minutes are free, and it is 25 cents for every additional 15 minutes.
The maximum amount of time per ticket is three hours for $3.
Attempts to reach village Clerk-Treasurer Anita Frangella were unavailing.
Lou Federico, Roslyn Chamber vice president, said the problem is constant, with some meters working while others are out of service. The meter most commonly out of service is the one near Delicacies Deli on Old Northern Boulevard, which is the most centralized option for tickets, he said.
“What happens is not only do you have to walk and get the ticket, but now you may have to walk two or three times as far,” Federico said. “I would say it’s definitely a negative. In the last few weeks, with the weather being so lousy, you’re walking through ice and slush to even get to the machines.”
Federico, owner of Certa Pro Painters, said while most of his business involves going to customers’ homes instead of enticing customers to his store, he sees the broken meters as a deterrent for people to come to the village.
“I think it’s affected other businesses,” Federico said. “It’s not an impact on me, but it’s an impact on restaurants and retailers in the village for sure.”
