A clerical error that resulted in the City of St. John’s failing to invoice Brink’s Canada for designated parking space has proven to be somewhat costly. The city billed the armoured vehicle service in 2000 for $3800 to cover the annual cost for designated permit-parking space in front of the Bank of Montreal on Water Street.

Due to what the city claims is a clerical oversight, no invoices were forwarded to Brink’s for the years 2001-04, meaning $11,400 in lost revenue for those years alone. Councilor Paul Sears, chairman of the City’s police and traffic committee said Brink’s has since been invoiced for the outstanding bill. But according to the city, the company refuses to pay the bill and that will lead to the elimination of the designated parking area. Asked if the city plans to pursue legal action, Sears said the city solicitor’s department is going to have to review what, if any action, can be undertaken.

Securicor, another armoured car service, requested the waiving of parking permit fess for the company while doing business on Water Street. City councilors rejected that request Monday. Councilors have agreed to consider the installation of a loading zone where Brink’s has traditionally parked in front of the Bank of Montreal. The local Brink’soffice referred Telegram calls to their head office in Toronto. No there could be reached for comment.

Sears meanwhile said council has decided to seek the input of the Downtown Development Commission (DDC) about the loading zone proposal. Further the at large councilor said the city plans to undertake a review of leading zones along Water Street, from Prescott Street to McBrides Hill as part of the consultations with the DDC. The police and traffic committee has noted no other downtown businesses – other than Brink’s Canada – enjoys the benefits of designated parking space on Water Street which is a fair comment Sears said. He added however city councilors and staff made a decision in 2000 to set aside the space for Brink’s to load and unload money. “If you are asking me as a councilor whether any one business on Water Street should have parking privileges over the others, my answer would be no,” Sears said.

DDC Chairman Bill Mahoney said Tuesday his group wouldn’t get involved in an issue between a private firm such as Brink’s and the City. But Mahoney said the commission looks forward to future discussion with the City on the loading zone issue. “The loading zones not only impact the businesses that are trying to do business in the downtown, it impacts all those who work and shop in the downtown as well,” he said. The argument has been made by some people that a person dropping into a store for five to 10 minutes should be permitted access to a loading zone. “I’m not sure that’s correct,” Mahoney said noting arguments can be made on both sides of the issue. “We certainly welcome the opportunity to have good discussions with the City around parking issues in the downtown.”

As for downtown parking in general, Mahoney said the DDC has addressed numerous issues with the city in the past. “We’d like to see more creative solutions applied to the parking problems,” he said. “We don’t have any exact answers but I think we really have to step back from it and look for solutions that can provide a more global approach to parking in the downtown. That may involve things like satellite parking and shuttles to the downtown. It sounds, perhaps, a little grandiose but I think we need to explore those kinds of options.”

TheTelgram. Wednesday, March 24, 2004. Craig Jackson.