St. Albert residents near high schools and the hospital may soon see some relief of parking concerns.
Council unanimously approved a one-year pilot program to implement residential parking passes in neighbourhoods near the Sturgeon Hospital, Bellerose High School and St. Albert Catholic High School at the Dec. 5 meeting.
Transportation manager Dean Schick outlined the project for council, saying the intent is to create something that could be put in place permanently and/or expanded depending on its success – as determined by affected residents.
“The pilot program itself is fairly heavy on resident engagement to determine success and failure on the system,” he said.
Residents living on affected streets will be able to apply to the city for up to two free resident parking passes, which would be linked to specific vehicles, and one visitor parking pass. He said parking on those streets would be available only to residents and visitors with valid passes during the period of 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for the areas near the schools and between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. for areas near the hospital.
This will replace a hodge-podge of systems currently in place in the identified problem neighbourhoods. Currently there’s resident-only parking on Ellesmere Drive and Invermere Place near the hospital; and no parking at all allowed during the day on Michener Place and Malmo Avenue near the Catholic high school.
Residents have voiced concerns to council about the situation, prompting a July 11 motion to implement the pilot program.
One resident, Lynda Holden, addressed councillors July 11, saying the situation on Michener Place is very difficult for residents to deal with and asking council to “rectify a long-overdue concern of the taxpayer.”
The no-parking zones during school days mean contractors and visitors who park on the crescent are often ticketed, despite having legitimate business at a residence.
Schick said residents in the affected area would be notified of the pilot project promptly and given ample time to apply for permits. The 12-month pilot could begin as early as Feb. 1, although he said March 1 may be a more realistic start date.
Residents will have the opportunity to provide feedback at the six-month mark, to identify potential concerns.
“The parking problem may not go away, it’s just going to be pushed (to nearby streets), and we want to be able to identify that as well,” Schick said.
A report on the results of the pilot is expected to come back to council the first quarter of 2018.
The pilot itself will cost an estimated $16,500 to implement, with the potential to increase if and when the program becomes permanent, and if more sites are added.
Crouse noted the high possibility of increased interest, with more residents wanting their streets to become part of the program.
“We have 30 school sites, and we’re going to have many other requests for these if this is successful,” he said.
Schick said letters explaining the program to affected residents are likely to be sent out early in the new year.
Affected streets
Near St. Albert Catholic High School: Michener Place, Montcalm Crescent, Marion Crescent, Malmo Avenue and Marchand Place<br />Near the hospital: Ellesmere Drive, Eastbourne Close, Evans Place, Elmwood Place, Eton Terrace, Ellis Court, Edgemont Point and Invermere Place.<br />Near Bellerose Composite High School: Dunfield Crescent, DeSevigny Place and Duvall Court.
