Avon’s pilot program for paid parking will go into effect this winter

It’s official: Avon will require payment for parking in almost all town-owned lots and bays starting this winter. At the Oct. 10 Avon Town Council meeting, the second reading of the ordinance to adopt paid parking regulations was approved by the council in a 6-0 vote, following initial council direction in April to begin the process of parking management.

Parking will be free for three hours, and $1 for each additional hour, in town-owned on-street parking bays on the following streets: East Benchmark Road, West Benchmark Road, Riverfront Lane, Lake Street, West Beaver Creek Boulevard, and Mikaela Way.

Parking will also be regulated in town-owned lots, with rules dependent on the use purpose of the lot.

The Old Town Hall parking lot will remain free all day, intended for employee parking and those making use of Harry A. Nottingham Park.

The Avon Recreation Center parking lot will require validation to park for up to three hours, with no additional time permitted. The validation will occur either in the form of a QR code for patrons to scan at the front desk, or a tablet for patrons to input their license plate into.

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Parking at Avon Town Hall is designated for Town Council members, town employees, and those conducting business at town hall. Drop off and pick up for the kindergarten will also be permitted. Those conducting business at Avon Town Hall will be provided with validation.

The North Parking Lot (Lot 16) will permit 10-minute drop-offs and three-hour free parking, with no opportunity to extend the time.

During the school year, Avon Elementary School parking will be designated for school staff, parents and school business. During the summer, Avon Elementary School parking will be free for three hours, and $1 for each additional hour.

Parking regulations will be in effect from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., seven days per week, with no overnight parking permitted. Avon’s code enforcement officers, police officers, and hired parking enforcement officers will monitor town parking and will be ticketing those parked in violation of the rules. The initial fine for violators will be $35 to increase if the fine remains unpaid after 45 days.

The town will be using a mobile payment system called T2, which allows Avon’s police force and Town Council and staff to specify the paid parking requirements to their liking.

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Patrons can pay for parking by either texting a phone number, or scanning a QR code, both of which will be posted on 85 signs in English, and an unknown number of signs in Spanish, close to parking spaces throughout town.

Instructions for using the mobile payment system will also be on the signs. To pay for parking, patrons are required to enter their license plate, which they can choose to keep on file for future parking, enter the amount of time they plan to remain in the parking spot, enter a credit card, which can also be kept on file for future parking, and confirm their billing zip code. With 15 minutes left on the online meter, patrons will receive a notification, and have the opportunity to add more time to avoid a ticket should they wish to remain in the space for longer.

The payment system will be attached to an online portal, which users can use to pay or contest parking tickets should they receive them.

As of right now, there is no system in place — a help line, for example — to pay for or receive help with parking payment issues without using the internet.

Avon residents will be able to receive permits for free weekend skier parking in the Avon Town Hall parking lot by showing proof of residence and putting their license plate in the system.

For those familiar with parking in Avon, paying for parking will require a behavioral adjustment, and this winter serve as a trial for the new system.

“This is a big pilot, to a large degree. We’re investing money in it, but it is trying to find a fine balance between residents, guests and employees,” said Greg Daly, Avon’s chief of police.

“The whole benefit of this particular system, T2 system, is that we can change it as we go, but also at the end of the winter, we can come back to (the Avon Town Council) and say, this is all the statistics of what happened over the winter, and propose it to (council), and then (council) can direct us to make whatever changes (council) would like to make based on our experience,” Daly said.

While the effective date for the paid parking ordinance is Nov. 9, the exact start date for implementing the payment system has yet to be set. The new paid parking regulations are expected to begin at some point between late November and early December.