By Richard Kaufman
Sentinel Reporter
As Greenwich’s Parking Services Department continues to clean up the parking codes around town, some debate has sparked over who should have the ability to park along Hillside Road next to the high school.
Both Selectmen Sandy Litvack and John Toner believe the road and parking should belong to the neighbors.
“I am more than sympathetic to the people who live on Hillside,” Litvack said. “My view is we do away with the parking on the street for the students. The residents there have a right to have that street like any other street. If there is to be parking on the street, it should not be reserved for the students.”
Several neighbors have argued that increased traffic from students during the work week, and church-goers on Sundays, has negatively impacted the quality of life and property values.
Litvack added that he believes a senior parking permit is not a right, but a privilege, and it should be treated as such. He suggested that perhaps students who make the honor roll would get parking permits. For students to obtain one of the 288 student parking spots on the GHS campus, there’s a lottery system in place.
Toner said that the neighbors need to be taken into consideration. “We have to allow them to have the rights of all property owners, any property owner in town,” he said.
On his weekly radio show on WGCH, First Selectman Peter Tesei said it would be “foolish and reactionary” to eliminate Hillside parking because it would make life more difficult for students and their families.
But changing ownership of Hillside’s parking spaces isn’t a simple task if the Board ultimately decided to follow that route. Because of a 1995 ruling by the Planning & Zoning Commission that recognized Hillside parking as part of the school’s inventory following the opening of the new GHS science wing, any changes made must need P&Z approval. But the Board of Selectmen, by state statute, is the recognized parking and traffic authority in town.
“That is a very significant question because we would be potentially undoing or overriding the actions of another body and we’d have to know before we fully considered it, that we have the authority to do so,” Tesei said at the meeting. “[P&Z] made a decision, though, that essentially encumbered any action that this board could make by putting in this condition.”
Interim Director of Parking Services, Mark Kordick, forewarned the board that eliminating parking spots for students would cause a stir.
“Theoretically, every [student] is the child of a taxpayer who should have fair use of public facilities,” Kordick said. “It is public parking on a public street. I’ve already been contacted by people who say, ‘do you need 300 seniors to show up at the next Selectmen meeting and demand the right to park on the street on public parking?’ I don’t know if you want to get into that discussion.”
Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Jill Gildea, was in attendance at the meeting and pushed back against the idea of eliminating parking, citing that students often work after school and need their vehicles for transportation.
Gildea pointed out that not every student can ride the bus, since within a two-mile radius of the high school, bus-travel isn’t available. GIldea also said that basing the issuance of parking permits off admittance to the honor roll wouldn’t be something she, or the Board of Education, supports.
“I do think you’re going to hear a lot of student participation in government if you change the rules. I think they will come and state their case as something that’s a rite of passage for seniors.” she said.
Gildea noted that re-educating parents on where they should pick-up in order to avoid double parking would be a good idea to curb traffic congestion.
Burke Dempsey, a resident on Hillside, spoke at the Selectmen meeting and called the traffic situation “chaotic.”
Another resident, Ashley Cole, said removing the roughly 70 parking spaces on Hillside would be a small price to pay to improve the quality of life.
“I was prepared to spend seven figures on Hillside Road. I still am, but I’ve put it on hold because I can’t justify that kind of expense with what’s happening on the street,” she said. “[It] hurts our property values and our quality of life. I beg of you, please, help us save our neighborhood. It’s good for everybody. If it means taking away 60-72 parking spots on the street just to free up traffic and to create a lovelier neighborhood, I would think that would be worth it. It’s a small cost to save a neighborhood.”
The Selectmen weren’t yet ready to take any action on the matter. They’ve formalized a request to the town’s legal department in order to better understand who has authority over making changes at Greenwich High.
The Selectmen also said there needs to be further discussion with the Board of Education.
