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St. Louis parking meters to increase by 33 percent
Nov 24, 2009 (St. Louis Post-Dispatch - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) --
Before heading out for holiday shopping in the city, make sure to put some extra quarters in your pocket. The cost to park at meters jumps 33 percent beginning Monday.
The change is citywide and comes from Treasurer Larry Williams, who oversees city parking.
His chief of staff, Michael Green, said Tuesday that the treasurer's office would put out a press release on the increase Wednesday. Until then, he could provide no information.
The increase means that a quarter that once bought 20 minutes of meter time is now only worth 15 minutes.
Employees of the treasurer's office have placed small green and white stickers on each meter below the coin slot, notifying parkers of the change.
"Public Notice: Effective 11-30-09, parking time in this space is 15 minutes for each 0.25 deposited in the meter."
The increase comes after the treasurer's office eliminated 66 positions earlier this year then installed two jumbo video boards costing nearly $200,000 on a new downtown parking garage. The boards were paid for by parking fees from garages and meters.
The $16 million garage where the boards are posted opened last summer next to the city Justice Center at Tucker Boulevard and Clark Avenue.
The video boards expense was questioned by some of the city treasurer employees who lost their jobs. Williams countered that the video boards were budgeted long before his office realized layoffs were needed.
Williams, whose annual salary is $95,000 , is an independently elected official. State law gives the treasurer the authority as the city's parking director to raise fees and spend the money to improve parking, including building garages.
Of the positions eliminated, 18 were laid off, while 17 opted to retire. The other 31 were either reassigned or hired by a private company the treasurer's office uses to manage some of the city's parking services.
To see more of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go
to http://www.stltoday.com. Copyright (c) 2009, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
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