Public can soon weigh in on proposal to raise parking costs in Lawrenceville

PITTSBURGH — The public will soon have a new opportunity to weigh in on a plan to increase parking rates during certain times in Lawrenceville.

The proposed ordinance, sponsored by Councilwoman Deb Gross, seeks to “reinvest” the generated revenue into mobility and infrastructure improvements within the neighborhood.

Those improvements could include sidewalk repairs, the creation of bus shelters, bike infrastructure development, traffic calming and more, according to information posted by the Lawrenceville Corporation.

The changes however could come at the cost to drivers seeking to park within the busy neighborhood. Revenue would be increased with “dynamic pricing,” meaning drivers could pay more to park during peak times.

There could also be “nighttime enforcement of meters.” Currently, meters on certain Butler Street blocks indicate that enforcement ends at 6 p.m. during the week.

One woman who works on Butler Street told Channel 11 that evening enforcement could cause the restaurants to suffer.

“It would kill them,” she said.

City Council is set to host a public hearing on the ordinance on Wednesday, Oct. 4 at 1:30 p.m. Click here for more information on registering.

Councilwoman Gross could not be reached for comment on Tuesday.

Channel 11 received the following statement from Sarah Trbovic, Lawrenceville Corporation’s Executive Director on Tuesday:Driven by the Lawrenceville community, Lawrenceville Corporation (LC) serves as a catalyst and conduit for responsible and sustainable growth in the Lawrenceville community. As part of that mission, we envision a neighborhood where “well-designed mobility infrastructure serves 21st century needs, and ensures safety and accessibility for all modes of transportation.”

For many years, Lawrenceville has been striving to meet the goals of improving our public infrastructure and managing parking demand more effectively. The Mobility Enhancement District legislation aims to better manage parking demand along the commercial district in Lawrenceville, while funding much-needed mobility and infrastructure improvements to make Lawrenceville safer, more accessible, and easier to get around for all community members.

Lawrenceville Corporation supports the first step of enacting the proposed mobility enhancement district legislation that will establish a Lawrenceville specific fund with the revenue collected during the additional hours of enforcement. The fund will allow for much needed public investment in infrastructure improvements such as traffic calming, sidewalk repairs, bus shelters and bike infrastructure in our thriving neighborhood.

Throughout April and May, LC, in conjunction with Lawrenceville United (LU), hosted a number of community meetings and open houses to discuss this legislation and gather feedback from Lawrenceville residents, business owners, and other constituents. Through these conversations, we heard from over 200 people and had many conversations surrounding this legislation. We will continue these conversations as changes are implemented. LC supports the proposed legislation as a way to meet these long-time community goals. We understand there’s work to be done, but this is a major step towards solving some of the issues the neighborhood is facing today and has been facing for many years.

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