Cedarhurst Store Manager Says Poor Parking Hurting Business

The manager of in Cedarhurst told village board members that his customers have difficulty shopping at the store because there aren’t enough short-term meters in the nearest parking field.

“In the center of the parking lot [number one], there is a row of long-term meters, and those meters are pretty much taken by about 8:30 a.m. The people parking there are usually employees of the banks in the area,” Yoeli Steinberg said. “Being that there’s no turnover in those spots, [shoppers] are forced to circle many times around, and sometimes there’s only parking somewhere very far from where they want to go, and sometimes they give up.”

Managers of , , and other merchants in the area agree that the situation is affecting their business, he said. Steinberg suggested that the village should shorten the time on those meters.

“Employees wouldn’t lose out too much, because there are other parking lots close by, which could handle the overflow of workers,” he said. “It would also be good for village revenue, because all those people could get parking permits instead of feeding the meters, which is just paying a couple of quarters.”

He added that the move wouldn’t affect railroad commuters and would help alleviate traffic on Washington Avenue.

“Certainly it makes sense on that particular lot,” Trustee Ari Brown said. “The bottom line is, we have to have a better turnover in the lots, especially that one. We’ll discuss it.”

Another complaint about parking was lodged by Cedarhurst resident Noam Rejman, who lives on Grove Avenue. He was angry over the removal of the no-parking zone on his street and the lack of alternate-side-of-the-street parking, which he claims makes it nearly impossible for him to pull out of his driveway with his boat, truck and trailer.

Rejman addressed the board on the same matter about a year ago, where he presented a petition asking for the reinstatement of the parking restrictions, which was signed by about a dozen of his neighbors.

However, according to Deputy Mayor Benjamin Weinstock, the village surveyed several residents of Grove, who said they did not want restricted parking.

“I think after a year I’m entitled to an answer,” Rejman said. “Why can’t I get out with my boat? Because people are observing the Shabbos?” he said in reference to neighbor’s having an abundance of visitors.

“Your boat is illegally parked on your property, according to village code,” Weinstock said. “It’s a fire hazard. You’re yelling at the mayor, and you’re belligerent. But we’re not looking to give you a hard time. Maybe we can create a bigger zone in front of your house.”

Meanwhile, Weinstock commended Mayor Andrew Parise on his handling of Hurricane Irene.

“It was only because of your careful planning and execution that we went through this storm so well,” Weinstock said.

But Parise didn’t claim the credit alone. “The cooperation I get, you won’t see just anywhere,” he said. “It’s just a great team effort.”