Editorial: Locals deserve parking privileges

Greenport officials deserve credit for saying out loud what many residents have been saying for weeks: The village’s expanded paid parking program needs adjustments.

That’s not a retreat. It’s reality.

After two weeks of front-page stories, public meetings, letters and frustrated conversations on Main Street, village leaders are openly discussing resident permits, employee passes and other fixes. Good. Because the problem was never paid parking itself.

Most people understand that Greenport needs revenue. Roads and infrastructure don’t maintain themselves, and officials have made a reasonable case that visitors should help cover costs in the village they come to enjoy.

The numbers aren’t small. The program is projected to bring in roughly $165,000 annually, and treasurer Adam Brautigam says replacing that revenue through property taxes would require a substantial levy increase.

That’s a legitimate concern.

So is paying visitor rates to park near your own home.

That’s where the village lost the plot.

When a village resident thinks twice about grabbing coffee. When a restaurant worker pays to park before a shift. When a local family starts avoiding downtown because parking feels like a toll booth, something isn’t working.

The loudest voices opposing this program aren’t demanding its elimination. They’re asking for fairness. Many are proposing solutions, not ultimatums.

And fairness isn’t hard to define: Visitors spending an afternoon shopping or strolling the waterfront can contribute to maintaining the village. Residents who live there 365 days a year shouldn’t pay the same rate as someone out for the weekend. Neither should the workers who keep the place running.

That’s not a free pass. It’s a distinction.

Resident permits deserve serious consideration. So do employee passes, a free first half-hour for quick errands and adjusted hours that reflect how people actually use the downtown area — not just how tourists do.

Village leaders need to move fast.

The people who call Greenport home year-round shouldn’t be left idling their cars this summer while officials figure out a solution.