AMHERST — Drivers parking their vehicles for free on weekdays on streets near downtown, a practice that has raised safety concerns for residents exiting nearby driveways, could be eliminated under a plan that will be the subject of a public hearing Thursday.
The Town Services and Outreach Committee is holding the virtual session at 7:15 p.m. on restrictions that would apply to the east side of Lincoln Avenue between McClellan and Amity streets, the east side of Sunset Avenue between Elm and Amity streets and one side of Elm Street.
Currently, people can park on those streets for free year-round because those parking spots are not among the 390 or so designated on-street permit spaces in what is considered town center.
In town center, permit spaces are set aside during the academic year, on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. from September through May, for use by people who pay either $50, if their vehicles are registered in town, or $250, for those who maintain their registration elsewhere.
The District 3 councilors representing the affected neighborhoods, Jennifer Taub and Dorothy Pam, have said that the people parking for free are creating a hazardous situation, especially during the school year. But last October similar proposed changes failed when councilors deadlocked in their vote.
One argument against the changes offered by other councilors has been that construction of a new dormitory at the Massachusetts Avenue end of Lincoln, and the rebuilding of Lincoln Apartments, has closed Lincoln to thru traffic.
But Taub has said that those who park are not discouraged by this, and either walk or bike from their vehicles to the UMass campus, and she worries what might happen in the fall of 2023.
“In the absence of parking restrictions, residents of the new dorms may park their cars on the street for days or weeks at a time,” Taub said. “Come the next school year, those who currently park on Lincoln may well find that when they arrive in the morning, all the parking spaces have been taken by cars belonging to residents of the new dorms.”
The changes have support from the Transportation Advisory Committee, which in July voted to recommend that the Town Council prohibit parking on the east side of Lincoln Avenue between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., prohibit parking on the east side of Sunset Avenue at all times and prohibit parking on one side of Elm Street at all times.
In its report to the TSO committee, members wrote, “No other Amherst neighborhood is facing such a rapid increase in nearby residents, related traffic, and parking demand with limited on-site parking supply.”
Those projects combined have 824 beds, but only about 100 parking spaces for their residents.
That committee suggests revisiting the topic of parking adjustments three to six months after the new dorms and apartments open.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.