STARKVILLE — After social media discourse over the weekend, the Starkville Board of Aldermen is considering amending the parking section of the Starkville Code of Ordinance to add signage to make its paid parking spots more visible.
The board approved a contract with third-party, paid-parking service ParkMobile in September, making the majority of parking spots in The Cotton District and Midtown subject to user payment.
While the paid-parking switch was publicized on the city’s social media, as well as covered in local media, resident Shana Lee said she was unaware of the change, prompting her to write a letter to the Starkville Daily News last week that she also posted on social media.
Lee said she would not be returning to the areas in the city that require paid parking, not because she does not support local businesses but because she does not want to give the city money in order to park.
Current signage includes a single, nearly one-foot sign per every few parking spots. Customers must download ParkMobile’s app or use the company website to reserve a parking space and scan the QR code on one of the signs upon arriving.
Tickets for people who do not pay to park are $25.
The city held its first public hearing to amend the parking article of the city code at its regular meeting Tuesday and will vote on it at its first meeting in May. The amendment includes rules for paid parking and says there will be signage for all spots that require ParkMobile usage.
Ward 1 Alderman Ben Carver said he has received several calls over the weekend regarding concerns over paid parking and would like to see better visibility for spots that are paid rather than the singular sign for every few spots. While more advertisement would help residents, he said visitors may be unaware of the paid spaces and better signage would alleviate confusion.
Ward 5 Alderman Hamp Beatty echoed Carver’s concerns saying the purpose of having paid parking is for customer turnover to give businesses more patronage, not for the city to get revenue or punish people.
“One bad experience and that person could say, ‘It’s just too much trouble, too much trouble to find a parking place,’” Beatty said. “‘I did everything I was supposed to do, and I got tagged with a $25 ticket. I’ll just go somewhere else.’ It’s too easy for somebody to go somewhere else and shop and eat out.”
Beatty said some other cities that use ParkMobile, like Auburn, Alabama, have kiosks for customers to pay for spots, and he believes kiosks would be helpful to the city and people who may not have smart phones to utilize the app. He said he also believes the city should give leeway for customers who receive their first parking ticket until people are familiar with the new system.
Citing that the Starkville Police Department has been diligent at ensuring people are following parking rules, Vice Mayor Roy A. Perkins, who represents Ward 6, said it is not the job of the board to decide on fines for tickets — that is up to municipal court.
“If anyone is dissatisfied with the issuance of a ticket, it is not the jurisdiction and authority of this legislative body to decide on matters and things that operate within the jurisdiction of traffic tickets,” Perkins said. “That’s not our role.”
Local business owner Tyler Klaas, who has two businesses affected by the paid parking system— the Klaasroom and Boardtown Pizza and Pints — said he supports the city using ParkMobile because it allows for customer turnover, which benefits his businesses. He said he does not believe there are enough parking spaces throughout The Cotton District and thinks the city should find ways to restructure the code to give parts of the city more parking, mentioning that he does not even have somewhere to park at his businesses.
“I think the code, structurally, should be looked at because I don’t think there is enough parking in general to support the students when they are here,” Klaas said. “I think there is plenty of parking to support the town, but I do not believe there is enough parking for when students are here.”
Insurance surcharge
The city will continue its $75 per month insurance surcharge for employees unvaccinated against COVID-19.
The board approved a policy in September requiring unvaccinated city employees to pay an additional $75 per month on their insurance. This charge did not go into effect until February.
A motion Tuesday to eliminate the surcharge failed 5-2, with Carver and Beatty the only aldermen in favor.
Acknowledging that the city continues to have events, parades and ball games, Carver said he believes it is time to eliminate this surcharge as cases continue to drop daily. He said there are a few employees who have discussed leaving their jobs because of the surcharge, and he does not know of any other city in the southeast that “discriminates” against their employees for not getting the vaccine.
“From my previous training … it would never be in good faith to be all in this room in a true global pandemic,” Carver said. “I know it’s teetering off, and that’s a great thing where we’re at as a county and especially as a state.”
Ward 2 Alderman Sandra Sistrunk said she believes it is time to think about possibly eliminating the COVID-19 policy, but she would like to see data that shows the virus is decreasing.
She said from December to February, there were 144 COVID-19 claims from city employees with health insurance costs of $35,000. March showed a change with extremely fewer claims and costs, but trends are not based on one month.
“I would be more than happy to support the appeal of the $75 health insurance if we know that we do in fact have a trend to support that and for me, a trend is at least two months, maybe three,” Sistrunk said.
Carver said if the city is going to have a surcharge for unvaccinated employees, he believes it should look at other risk factors as well, such as smoking or large body masses. Sistrunk said these issues are indeed health risks, but they are not contagious.
Ward 3 Alderman Jeffrey Rupp, Ward 4 Alderman Mike Brooks and Ward 7 Alderman Henry Vaughn said they would potentially want to discuss eliminating the charge at the board’s second meeting in May after it receives data surrounding the virus.
“I want to get rid of it sooner rather than later, but not tonight,” Rupp said.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 37 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.