Newton-Needham Chamber Asks Wellesley BOS To Extend Free Meters

The following is a letter written by Newton-Needham Regional Chamber of Commerce President Greg Reibman to the Wellesley Board of Selectmen outlining the benefits of extending free parking meters in Wellesley.

Dear Wellesley Select Board:

I’m writing to urge the town to extend the free parking meter program.

Paid parking is an essential tool for managing turnover. But parking in Wellesley's retail areas doesn’t seem to be a problem right now, which should be all the evidence needed to determine that it's too soon to resume charging.

Meanwhile, our retailers and restaurants are struggling right now. We should do everything we can to make it easy for customers to shop and dine locally, rather than choosing to go to the internet, a mall, or to a neighboring community (including Newton and Needham) that continue to offer free meters.

There are many reasons to feel encouraged about our future – COVID infections and hospitalizations are down, more people are becoming vaccinated each day -- but we’re not there yet. Businesses need this tool to get through to the spring and residents deserve this small reward (and incentive) for shopping locally.

Once finding a parking space becomes challenging again (and we all look forward to that day), then we will know it is time to reinstate charging.

Thanks for your thoughtful consideration.

Greg Reibman