It’s that most wonderful time of year for Plymouth residents. No, not the holidays – the return of free parking downtown and along the waterfront.
As of Dec. 1, you no longer must pay to park in metered spots or in lots with pay stations. The gratis-parking season extends all the way down the road to March 31. The reason behind it is simple – with the tourists mostly gone post-Thanksgiving, the need to tightly manage the business district’s limited parking spaces is lessened. It also provides a boost to businesses by making the area more accessible to customers during the slower winter months.
Griping about parking is a kind of tradition among some people – right up there with complaining about taxes, politicians, and of late, the Patriots. Park Plymouth, the private company that has a memorandum of understanding with the town to manage parking, often takes heat from residents over its enforcement of parking rules, but in some ways it’s simply a math problem – Plymouth has about 60,000 registered vehicles and 1,475 paid parking spots. Add to that the thousands of tourists who visit the town every day in warmer weather. Turning over those parking spaces during the busiest times of the year is essential.
There are some free year-round parking spaces downtown and in the town lot on Water Street near Nelson Park, but they account for a small percentage of the total.
A plan floated by Park Plymouth last year to eliminate two-hour free parking spaces on Main and Court streets seems to have descended into oblivion after a less than enthusiastic reception from the public.
Parking at one popular parking area – the lot at Jenney Pond – is temporarily limited because of the ongoing dredging project there. (The murky pond was last dredged in 1967.)
But in keeping with the adage that nothing in life is truly free, Park Plymouth offers this reminder about its off season policies: “During this period, there is no need to pay the posted hourly rates, but you must observe the posted time limits that are in effect between the hours of 9:00a.m. and 7:00 p.m., seven days a week and on holidays,” it notes. “During the free parking season, you risk getting a ticket only if you don’t observe the posted time limits or other restrictions at any parking location.”
At metered spaces, that time limit is generally four hours between the hours of 9 a.m. and 7 p.m.
Mark Pothier can be reached at mark@plymouthindependent.org.