ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Diana Nagy said succinctly what several people who spoke Tuesday at a public forum held by the Allentown Parking Authority at the Americus Hotel also conveyed.
“The parking authority is out of control," she said. "Out of control.”
- Allentown Parking Authority held a forum Tuesday at the Americus Hotel
- Many residents called for more consistent enforcement of parking violations throughout the city
- Allentown City Council unanimously voted last week to spend $10,000 on an analysis of the parking authority
Nagy was among more than two dozen people who vented their frustrations with the agency at the forum — the latest in a series of meetings at which residents have complained about predatory practices and over-ticketing by Allentown Parking Authority employees.
City resident Edwin Vega told parking authority employees he once received three separate citations for the same violation and has even been ticketed on private property.
“Not only are they out of control, they think they control everything,” Vega said.
Driving revenue, chasing customers
Several Allentown business owners warned parking authority officials Tuesday that their aggressive enforcement could put them out of work.
Rich Ryan, owner of Brü Daddy's Brewing on Hamilton Street, said many potential customers are staying away from downtown Allentown because “parking is a mess.”
“You can’t get people that live outside of Allentown to come down here, and the Allentown Parking Authority is one of the obstacles,” Ryan said. “That’s one of the number one complaints that we hear from people.”
Ryan said the authority should work with businesses to alleviate parking issues, which would help the city thrive.
But “it seems to us like you guys are working on a totally different plan: ‘Let’s drive as much revenue through the parking authority as we possibly can,’” Ryan said.
La Cocina del Abuelo owner Greenberg Lemus showed off a stack of parking tickets, totaling about $3,500, that he said he’s received at his restaurant since October.
Lemus warned that downtown Allentown could become a “ghost town” if the city doesn’t figure out a solution to the lack of parking spaces and stop excessively ticketing businesses and customers.
But residents at Tuesday's forum didn't just air their grievances; many offered potential solutions — such as ending 24/7 enforcement of parking ordinances, parking in alleys and letting businesses validate parking for their customers.
Many also called for more accountability and transparency from the parking authority, as well as more consistent enforcement throughout the city.
Some feeling targeted
Nailah Abdur-Rahkman, as did other residents, said she feels like she is being targeted by parking authority employees.
Her car was towed and she is working to get her license back after getting five tickets in a month from the Allentown Parking Authority. She said the tickets will cost her $1,100, and she recently paid almost $400 to make sure she wouldn’t be arrested.
“I have warrants for my arrest for parking tickets,” Abdur-Rahkman said. “I think that is absurd.”
Ted Zeller, chairman of the Allentown Parking Authority's board of directors, has called for the agency to remove all references to "prison" from its ordinances.
Last week, the Allentown City Council unanimously approved a request from Mayor Matt Tuerk for $10,000 to analyze the parking authority’s practices.
The study would examine the authority’s “unchecked power” and identify ways to make parking services more “equitable and efficient” in Allentown, Tuerk said.
Writing to city council, Tuerk said there is a lack of accountability and transparency at the parking authority.
The mayor said he requested funding for the study in response to numerous complaints by residents at recent city council, parking authority and community group meetings.
Potential solutions
Allentown is not alone in its struggles to offer adequate parking options for its residents and visitors.
A comprehensive parking study in Reading last year recommended city officials make it easier for residents in row homes with rear alley access to install parking pads in their back yards, as some Allentown residents have suggested.
City officials in Lockport, Illinois, launched a complimentary valet program in March 2021 that immediately improved downtown traffic and eliminated congestion caused by cars driving around looking for a parking space.
Arlington, Virginia, now uses a real-time tracker that uses sensors and a video-detection system to tell drivers what parking spots are available.
Officials in Columbus, Ohio, are looking to public transit to help alleviate traffic and parking headaches. The city won $50 million in grants through the U.S. Transportation Department’s Smart City Challenge to support its mission to solve mobility issues.
Columbus would prioritize rapid-transit bus lines, with a network of sensors to detect those vehicles and change traffic lights to green as they move through the city.
