Right now at the Government House in Belize City, Mayor Bernard Wagner is having a Town meeting to hear out concerned residents who've spent the week rallying against his council's new parking meters. We have a team there and attendance is not great - only 22 persons.
Still, the Mayor says he's "peeved" at the pushback against the meters - and says he's confounded that business owners say that they are losing business - when the purpose, was to drive business to these areas.
But ahead of this evening's meeting, we wanted to get a feel for the situation on the ground so Cherisse Halsall headed to Princess Margaret drive to speak to three disgruntled business owners who say that the only thing the parking meters have accomplished is taking a bite out of their revenues. Here's that story:
It's been almost a week since the Belize City council's parking meters have gone up on Albert street and Princess Margaret Drive, and the parking slots remain practically deserted.
It's a turn of events that have left the strip's business people quite unhappy. The owner of premium wines and spirits is condemning the damage to his business in no uncertain terms.
Richard Price - Owner, Premium Wines and Spirits
"It's been a disaster, I would say in terms of walk-in business to our store and we've been here 22 years now and I would say our business is down about 70% for a walk-in trade and it hasn't changed and we are now on Thursday so it's been like that all week. If you were to look down the road now there is not a car in sight parked anywhere. This was something that was not requested by any member of the business community in this area. As far as I know, no general members of the public requested parking meters, I see no one who can benefit from this apart from the city council and their revenue stream. It does no good to me at all. A lot of my business is just people coming to the store here to pick up a small purchase, a bottle of wine a, a couple of bottles of wine and they aren't in the store for more than 10 minutes typically this is not really a place where you come and spend an hour. It's just a quick drop in and drop out. And they just aren't going to pay one the money and two to walk 50 yards down the street and enter into the process of buying a card then trying to use it on the machine then walking back the 50 yards just to come into the shop for one of two minutes. It's just not worth it. So, They'll go elsewhere."
And while business suffers, the average citizen is bearing the brunt of what amounts to yet another tax. This shopkeeper says that while he's struggled to sell his panades this week, he's more concerned about the inequity of the move.
Derek Gabourel - M&D's restaurant, BTL Park
"My main concern is the amount that they are charging because the minimum wage is $3.30 cents. If you do the equation it has to be 25 cents an hour that you charge the average individual to come to this park. This park is not only for certain individuals, this park is for everyone, and that isn't only why I fight so much about the situation, I had a meeting with the mayor yesterday and I told him that I do understand the dynamics. We are taking a beating out here everyone took a beating because of the virus. So, we've just started, since they opened back up open back up and so now here this thing comes with this parking. I think they jumped into it a little bit too fast without consulting all the stakeholders and so on it is what it is I mean we tend to do things haphazardly in Belize is a reactionary type of people, we are not proactive. You put things in place first before you do things, that's how I do things."
Cherisse Halsall
"Have you seen a marked difference in the flow of customers since this."
Derek Gabourel
"Yes, there is a big difference it's like day and night, I mean big difference, the mayor he mentioned that give it time but then…not everyone has time. Time is ambiguous, and time is money."
And back across the street at Thirsty Thursdays, owner Linford Rosado told us that the City council seems to have fied something that wasn't bokeh. It is now.
Linford Rosado - Owner, Thirsty Thursdays
"We had no parking issues. I don't know where this came from and it's killing us. The Mayor said yesterday on TV that it's a nine year project so it sounds to me like he's written it in stone. The people are speaking loudly because they are bi-cutting it and so I don't know what's going to happen. The playing field just isn't level anymore. Somebody needs to at least listen and hear what we are saying and c'mon lets at least make it a little more convenient."
Cherisse Halsall
"Since the interview yesterday has anybody from the City council reached out to you?"
Linford Rosado
"Absolutely not, absolutely not, nothing at all."
We asked Rosado how he feels about that continued lack of consultation:
Linford Rosado
"I've been here for thirteen years and this is the third mayor, ok this is the third mayor in thirteen years so I'll leave it at that."
The business owners also discussed concerns for their safety with one of them fearful of walking on darkened back streets at the end of the day after being forced by necessity to park at such a distance.
For his part, Price is nervous about having to open the gate in his yard to allow for customer parking. Closing the gate became part of the business's protocol after a major robbery 2 years ago.
