Thanks to Laurel and Denny Dean Christopher Pennington, Rose Bailey and other outspoken St. Augustine Beach residents, the City of St. Augustine Beach's smartphone parking app paid parking plan is dead.
Three cheers to the activists in St. Augustine Beach, Florida!
Mr. Pennington in particular suggested during a March town hall meeting leasing a lot between 4th and 5th streets and charging for parking -- which it appears it will now likely do. Finis!
No need for the PASSPORT LABS, INC smartphone app parking scheme.
This morning, on May Day, a chauvinistic St. Augustine Beach Mayor UNDINE CELESTE PAWLOWSKI is in the local newspaper and electronic media, flogging her singular spin on the Monday, April 29, 2019 special meeting.
She told the Jacksonville National Public Radio affiliate, WJCT:
For those of us in the reality-based community:
Tbe controversial PASSPORT LABS LLC parking app Mayor GEORGE championed, 2018-2019, is dead.
Dead as a doornail. Dead as Kelsey's nuts, as Presidents JFK and Nixon would say.
Dead as the wicked witch in The Wizard of Oz, pronounced dead by the Munchkin Coroner: "As Coroner I must aver, I thoroughly examined her. And she's not only merely dead, she's really most sincerely dead. Then this is a day of Independence For all the Munchkins and their descendants. If any. Yes, let the joyous news be spread The wicked Old Witch at last is dead!"
Activists having defeated a large corporation's marketing scheme, no credit is given to the local activists, and the lede is not just buried, but omitted.
The County's scheme is in doubt, too. But St. Augustine Beach now admits that the county was not imminently implementing anything. St. Augustine Beach City Manager BRUCE MAX ROYLE had lied about it, urging urgency. He's now got a $400,000 hole in the budget because his smartphone parking app scheme blew up.
Mayor GEORGE and City Manager ROYLE were rail-roading the PASSPORT LABS, INC. app.
Activists stopped the train.
Nothing is written in the Establishment press about the simple palpitating truth of the matter.
Here's the City of St. Augustine's spin from those unhappy hick hack amanuenses at the St. Augustine Record, WJCT and Historic City News blog:
St. Augustine Beach to work with county on parking, re-examine budg
By Sheldon Gardner
Posted Apr 30, 2019 at 8:07 PM
Updated Apr 30, 2019 at 8:07 PM
St. Augustine Record
St. Augustine Beach commissioners want to work with St. Johns County to establish a unified paid parking system, but the details aren’t final — and it could be next year before the program rolls out, City Manager Max Royle said.
County government officials are working with the firm Republic Parking System to build a plan for a paid parking system at Pier Park, the east end of Pope Road and locations outside of St. Augustine Beach that the county controls. St. Augustine Beach controls lots in other parts of the city.
The idea is for the city and the county to use the same company so drivers won’t have to use two different parking systems in St. Augustine Beach. But the city might have to open an advertisement for other firms to apply, interim City Attorney Jeremiah Mulligan said.
The County Commission is expected to review plans this summer, but it could be March 2020 before the county implements something, Royle said at Monday’s Commission meeting.
Mayor Undine George said she doesn’t like the idea of waiting on county officials and wondering if they will proceed.
“I’m concerned about a perpetual delay,” she said.
Commissioner Don Samora, part of the beach team who recently met with county officials on the issue, said it would be the wrong move to get out-of-step with the county on paid parking.
Vice Mayor Margaret England said she isn’t as concerned with the delay as she is with getting the program right. She asked for Royle to make sure paid parking plans won’t have an impact on any grants or beach funding.
St. Augustine Beach commissioners have supported offering free parking for Beach residents and a discount for county residents. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Project Manager Jason Harrah told The Record in a previous interview that charging different parking rates based on residency could change how much federal funding goes toward St. Augustine Beach renourishment.
Another key issue is the city’s budget. The city had planned to have a paid parking system in place by now, and the city budgeted about $403,000 in revenue from a parking system that’s not in place.
Commissioner Maggie Kostka called the money issue the elephant in the room.
“We have, for all (intents) and purposes, spent money that we don’t have,” she said.
Commissioners will have a special meeting at 5:30 p.m. June 17 to talk about budget issues and the long-range financial plan, as well as other issues such as candidates for the new city attorney, according to Royle.
The city plans to bring back an ordinance that will set rules for establishing resident-only parking in neighborhoods. Commissioner Dylan Rumrell said getting that ordinance in place to protect neighborhoods before implementing paid parking is the top priority.
Commissioners also decided to delay discussions on using a commercial space between 4th and 5th streets for paid parking.
In other business
• The city hired William Tredik as the new public works director and city engineer, according to Royle. Tredik replaces Joe Howell, who died in February. Tredik’s starting salary is $96,000. Howell’s salary was about $96,000.
In addition to working as a city engineer for Palm Coast and working for private engineering firms, Tredik worked from 2009 to this year as a project manager for the St. Johns River Water Management District, according to Royle.
• Commissioners supported plans to allow local artists to paint dozens of city garbage cans. Art Galleries of St. Augustine is spearheading the project with the help of local artists.
• Commissioners decided not to change from recycle bins to wheeled carts. A representative from Advanced Disposal, the city’s recycling provider, said the carts tend to result in more contaminated materials than bins. Keeping the bins is also less costly, according to Royle.
As per the city’s agreement with Advanced Disposal, the Commission had to decide whether to go with carts by May 31, according to Royle. Advanced Disposal plans to look at the possibility of providing other equipment make it easier for residents to wheel their bins to their curbs.
The Commission plans to revisit other recycling options closer to the expiration of Advanced Disposal’s contract in May 2022.
• Commissioners adopted two resolutions, one encouraging local businesses to stop using plastic and Styrofoam products, and the other opposing offshore drilling. The Commission still plans to consider regulating the use of plastic and Styrofoam products, but Monday’s resolution was a step the Commission could take in the meantime, George said.
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St. Augustine Beach Commissioners Vote To Implement Paid Parking In 2020
2019 is expected to be the final summer when it's free to park at St. Augustine Beach.
St. Augustine Beach Commissioners decided Monday night to use the same parking system and rate structure that St. Johns County recently approved.
Mayor Undine George said that will help cut-down on confusion.
“The Pier Park, for instance, having one system and then coming down the street to, let’s say, the 10th Street parking lot that the beach owns— if it’s a different system it’s just going to be confusing. We want the rates to be similar. We want the discounts to be similar and the signage and everything - so [we’re] trying to make it easy," said George.
As it stands now, St. Johns County wants visitors to pay more for parking than residents. The parking at the pier is controlled by the county as are some other parking locations in the area.
Because the county is planning to roll-out its paid-parking system next March, George said St. Augustine Beach will likely do the same. The county and St. Augustine Beach have chosen Republic Parking to manage their parking programs.
Contact reporter Cyd Hoskinson at choskinson@wjct.org, 904-358-6351 and on Twitter at @cydwjctnews.
From the Historic City News blog, admittedly based on one source -- the City of St. Augustine's PR person:
Beach deals with issues during a special commission meeting Monday night
April 30, 2019
St. Augustine Beach Communications Coordinator Cindy Walker reported to Historic City News this morning that on Monday evening, April 29, the City of St Augustine Beach held a Special Commission Meeting, discussing and presenting issues, like painting trash cans, recycling services, a new city attorney, televising and live streaming meetings, paid parking, banning single use plastic bags, and opposing offshore drilling.
“ART CAN!” is an exciting new beautification project in the City of St. Augustine Beach! Art Galleries of St. Augustine (AGOSA) President (Sylvia Gortz), Vice President (Laura O’Neal), and Ann Palmquist brought the idea of asking local artists paint the City’s old trash cans to AGOSA. Laura O’Neal presented the City of St. Augustine Beach with the first three painted cans. AGOSA will continue to paint six cans at a time and so on…until the City of St Augustine Beach has all ART CANS!
Next, representatives from Advanced Disposal presented recycling facts and a consideration of switching from recycling bins to wheeled carts. After discussion of cost, the Commission made a motion to not amend the current contract, thus keeping the recycling bins the City currently has.
At the conclusion of the last commission meeting, Attorney Jim Wilson announced his resignation as City Attorney, effective May 1. He stated that he will continue his private practice on a very limited basis, as he wishes to have more time to spend with his children and wife. His law firm, Coquina Law Group, will take over his responsibilities after May 1. The City Commission discussed the request for proposals (RFP) for a new City Attorney. They will advertise the position and conduct interviews at a special meeting on June 17, 2019 at 5:30pm.
Anthony Johns, IT Manager, presented the options and associated costs of live streaming City Commission and Planning and Zoning Board Meetings in an ADA compliant manner. After discussion, the City Commission decided to submit an RFP for equipment for live streaming and to cease our broadcast through Comcast (due to cost.)
The commission held the first reading of a proposed ordinance that would implement a residential parking permit system, similar to the program in the City of St. Augustine. If you live on a residential street, you may request up to two parking permits per household. Only those vehicles displaying a properly registered permit may park on that street. Each permit may only be used on the one vehicle that is registered to that permit. Enforcement would be managed by the City of St. Augustine Beach Parking Enforcement Specialist. This ordinance, read by title only and passed, will be brought for a second reading and final action at the regular commission meeting on June 10 at 6:00 p.m.
Discussion followed about having a uniform parking management system with St. Johns County. The City Commission reviewed the proposal submitted by Republic Parking System to St. Johns County. After discussion, the Commission decided to continue to watch what the county will do and requested City staff to communicate with County staff.
Then, the Commission reviewed the possibility of leasing the property between 4th and 5th streets, west of the Blvd., as a temporary parking lot. The City would be required to pay the taxes on the property and build a parking infrastructure after three years. Chief Finance Officer, Melissa Burns, will explore funding options and present them to the Commission at the June 17 Special Meeting.
Prior to adjournment, two non-binding resolutions passed that encourage residents and businesses not to use plastic straws, stirrers, and similar plastic items, in order to keep a healthier ocean and cleaner environment. Another resolution was passed recognizing offshore drilling as an environmental risk and that the commission opposes the federal government pursuing these practices off Florida’s coast.
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