State Senator Daniel Squadron reacted strongly to the Department of Transportation's rejection of residential parking permits (RPP) near the Barclays Center Saturday, saying denying residents parking in their own neighborhood is "particularly troubling."
"A permit system is long overdue in neighborhoods where residents spend hours circling for parking near their homes -- especially on the overcrowded streets surrounding New York City's stadiums and major business districts," Squadron said in a statement.
Squadron, the Senate sponsor of legislation that would bring RPP to New York City communities that want the program, urged his colleagues to pass the bill, saying it "empowers communities while protecting small businesses, reducing congestion, and helping fund our subways and buses."
The Squadron legislation, which is also sponsored by Assemblymember Joan Millman, would allot at least 20 percent of spots on streets with RPP to non-permit parkers, would not be allowed on commercial streets and public hearings would be required before implementation of RPP in a neighborhood.
The Department of Transportation released a study July 6 that , and that residential parking permits won’t be needed.
The report cited Yankee Stadium in the Bronx as an example of why permit parking would not be necessary in the Brooklyn neighborhoods surrounding the 18,000-seat arena.
"Most fans who drive to games at Yankee Stadium park off-street. Of the 10 percent of fans who park on-street, most park in an area within a few blocks of the stadium. Throughout most of the area around Yankee Stadium, parking occupancies remain low enough that residents generally have spaces available to them during Yankee games," the report says.
Parking will be less of an issue at Barclays Center because it “will have a smaller seating capacity and even better transit accessibility," the report said.
