Haverhill City Council to Consider Downtown Parking Changes; Rates, Uniform Hours on Agenda

The Herbert H. Goecke Jr. Memorial Parking Deck. (WHAV News file photograph.)

Click image for Haverhill City Council agenda.

The public has opportunities to shape policy this week as various Haverhill boards meet. In the interest of transparency in government, WHAV provides this list of upcoming meetings every week.

A variety of updates to Haverhill’s downtown paid parking program—including a proposed fee increase—are scheduled to be considered tonight by the Haverhill City Council.

Haverhill Mayor James J. Fiorentini is recommending councilors raise the price of monthly parking passes from $20 to $25 and per spot rates from 50 cents to $1 for parking both on-street and in city parking lots. He said there has been no increases in eight to 10 years.

“Even at a dollar, we will still have the least expensive paid parking rates in the state,” he said in a letter to councilors.

Another piece of legislation aims to make parking hours uniform to avoid confusion. Rather than three different sets of hours, parking rules would be in effect at all locations, Monday through Saturday, from 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Proposed ordinances would also prohibit downtown employees from using parking permits at the Washington-Wingate lot and adjust the parking map to reflect changes created by construction of Salvatore N. Lupoli’s Haverhill Heights project.

Adoption of different changes to the parking rates and rules have recently been postponed because of lengthier items on weekly agendas. Changes to the program also require most councilors to be present.

In other business before the City Council, members will receive a recommendation to relocate the statue of Hannah Duston in Grand Army of the Republic Park. While the recommendation comes from the Haverhill Historic District Commission, the Council’s own Natural Resources and Public Property Committee has yet to release its own findings.

The meeting takes place at 7 p.m., both remotely and in person in the Theodore A. Pelosi Jr. City Council Chambers, City Hall, 4 Summer St., Haverhill. As a public service, 97.9 WHAV will carry the meeting live.

In other public meetings this week:

Tuesday, Dec. 1

Haverhill Board of Assessors meets to discuss excise tax abatements, status of statutory exemptions and certification of the tax rate by the state Department of Revenue, Tuesday, Dec. 1, from 9-10 a.m., in the Assessor’s office, room 115, Haverhill City Hall.

MassHire Merrimack Valley Workforce Board meets Tuesday, Dec. 1, 9 a.m., via online Zoom meeting.

Haverhill School Committee Negotiating Team for Transportation Employees meets remotely Tuesday, Dec. 1, 4:30 p.m., to conduct collective bargaining with SEIU/Transportation Employees.

Haverhill City Council meets Tuesday, Dec. 1, 7 p.m., both remotely and in person in the Theodore A. Pelosi Jr. City Council Chambers, City Hall, 4 Summer St., Haverhill. Among the topics on the agenda are receipt of a recommendation from the Haverhill Historic District Commission regarding the statue of Hannah Duston in Grand Army of the Republic Park. (See separate story.)

Wednesday, Dec. 2

Merrimack Valley Metropolitan Planning Organization, associated with the Merrimack Valley Planning Commission, meets Wednesday, Dec. 2, from noon-1 p.m., remotely. Members discuss transportation projects such as the I-495 bridge replacement project in Haverhill, and amendments to the Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Authority projects this fiscal year.

Thursday, Dec. 3

Haverhill Housing Authority meets Thursday, Dec. 3, 4 p.m., remotely. Agenda items include group home bathroom renovations at 16 Highland Ave., Haverhill.

Haverhill School Committee Negotiating Team for Secretaries’ Unit of the Haverhill Education Association meets remotely Thursday, Dec. 3, 4:30 p.m., to conduct collective bargaining with the Secretaries’ Unit of the Haverhill Education Association.

Haverhill License Commission is scheduled to meet Thursday, Dec. 3, 6 p.m., in the Theodore A. Pelosi Jr. City Council Chambers, City Hall, 4 Summer St., Haverhill.

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