The Walden Village Board met recently to discuss parking challenges in the downtown business district, with special focus on a proposal from the Walden Business Council to introduce parking passes for businesses. Cheryl Baker, speaking on behalf of the newly-formed council, presented a range of parking recommendations, highlighting the impact on local businesses.

“Our local businesses are heavily reliant on accessible and available parking for their employees and customers,” Baker said.

The primary request was for business-specific parking passes that would guarantee parking for business owners and employees, reducing competition for limited customer parking spaces. Baker noted that similar passes have been effective in municipalities like Larchmont, Sleepy Hollow, and Farmingdale, allowing businesses to function without occupying high-demand customer spaces.

“This would ensure that those who contribute daily to the economic activity of this village have a reliable access to parking,” Baker said.

Baker also proposed timed parking in the Oak Street Parking Lot to increase customer turnover, mirroring successful approaches seen in other village lots. Similar restrictions have been placed on parking in the Orchard Street lot.

Further suggestions included enhancing municipal signage to better direct visitors to available parking and using eminent domain to convert underutilized properties into additional parking.

“We strongly urge the village to consider using eminent domain to acquire underutilized or derelict properties for parking expansion,” Baker suggested. She noted that other municipalities like Mount Kisco, Port Chester and Harrison have similarly used eminent domain to address parking needs as part of our broader redevelopment efforts.

“Acquiring such priorities would significantly increase available parking space and benefit the public by supporting local businesses,” Baker said. “Additionally, federal funds are available specifically for this purpose under various urban renewal redevelopment grants.”

The business council also voiced opposition to meter parking on Main Street, citing negative impacts in comparable towns which experienced a downturn in foot traffic once meters were installed.

“Driving customers to larger centers with free parking, giving that our Main Street businesses are already struggling, we believe that meter parking could further discourage parking damage. We believe these initiatives will greatly enhance parking accessibility and in turn support the continued growth and vitality of the Walden Business District,” Baker concluded.

Deputy Mayor Chris Batson and trustees engaged in a detailed discussion about implementing the passes, noting potential administrative and enforcement challenges. Batson emphasized that the board would need to establish specific procedures and oversight for the proposed pass system.

“It’s probably not as easy as just simply getting some parking passes and paying cost of a placard. You know what happens if somebody loses 15 placards we’re just billing them $25 and then all of a sudden 15 placards show up and now we have an excess like there’s a small program there that has to be managed administratively,” Watson said. “That again, not a deal breaker at all, I just want to make sure that whomever we tasked with this the clerk or somebody is aware of there’s also a bit of an administrative process.”
Trustee Ralph Garrison agreed.

“I think the passes for the business owners in theory sounds awesome,” Garrison said. “But I just think realistically it may be very difficult. It’s gonna be over a hundred parking passes just based on employees and businesses alone. I don’t know if the village parking could sustain having all of those parking passes and still have parking for the customers to be able to park and use the businesses. And that’s my take on that.“

Garrison added that he is opposed to any time limits placed on asking at the Oak Street lot.

Trustee Becky Pearson questioned the necessity of passes, suggesting the untimed Oak Street lot should be optimized instead, while other trustees raised concerns about long-term, unattended vehicles in the lot, affecting availability.
“Well, that’s our problem,” Pearson said of unattended vehicles. “That’s a problem that the village has to address. That’s not a parking issue.”
Village Manager John Revella agreed.

“I think getting an idea of how to get those cars moving in Oak Street is going to be big,” Revella said. “That’s a priority. Absolutely. Wasting 12 spots there is not conducive to anything. “

Pearson also wondered if some of the larger businesses, specifically banks, might have additional parking space that could be made available to neighboring businesses.

“If they’re gonna pay for a parking pass,” Pearson suggested, “then they might pay to park in a parking lot that’s just around the corner from them.”

The board acknowledged the complexity of implementing a business pass program and agreed to revisit the parking issue at the next meeting on November 12, aiming to address both business and residential parking needs.