The new parking meter system in Belize City - may be a pilot project - but it's definitely going through some turbulence on take off. After one week - businesses and drivers have griped and complained abut the system put into place in the city.
But, not many of those complaints were heard last night at a town meeting in Belize City - where we didn't find many business owners. I was there and here's what I found out:
This is what your Parking meter will look like when you park on Princess Margaret drive and this is what your meter will look like on Albert Street.
And, they aren't compatible. But what does that mean for the consumer? Well if you go downtown as often as you frequent the park it means you'll have to be the holder of two different parking cards.
This was the mayor's exchange with a disgruntled citizen over the annoying duality at last night's familiarization meeting.
Resident:
"Sir are you asking each driver to purchase two cards?"
Bernard Wagner, Mayor of Belize City
"If you are visiting downtown."
Resident:
"Well I live on the northside I have to visit the southside."
Bernard Wagner, Mayor of Belize City
"If you're visiting downtown then obviously you will need a card for the downtown zone it's two different entities sir."
Resident
"It's not fair to the people, I understand you but it's a pilot project, it's a pilot project give it time."
But why wouldn't the city wouldn't just standardize the process and use one card?
Bernard Wagner, Mayor of Belize City
"So you ask why two vendors? Our city believes in transparency, right our city council, we believe that having two different vendors during this pilot project gives us this opportunity at the end of the day to say listen to which one of these vendors provides the level of service that our people and our residents want and that is why we are using two different vendors."
But is that really the reason?
We asked competitor Marlon Skeen about his competitors yesterday and he said this.
Marlon Skeen, Owner, Betta Parking Solutions
"How did the other group got involved you tell me."
Cherisse Halsall:
"And also if your machines are so good sir why didn't they just let you do the whole thing?"
Marlon Skeen, Owner, Betta Parking Solutions
"You just said it: political influence."
And while Skeen aka Betta Parking solutions rather transparently demonstrated the use of his own machines last night,
Parking Solutions sent this young man as their representative.
It's curious because the contract for the parking metres is very much a public one and while Skeen boldly showed his face, his competitor seems to be hiding.
We asked the mayor about it after the meeting had concluded but he was only able to call one name out of what he says are several groups behind the company.
Cherisse Halsall:
"Now sir I want to come back to something you said in tonight's meeting about transparency and in that I want to ask you about the young man who gave the second demonstration. Is he in fact the owner of the parking meters on Albert street?"
Bernard Wagner, Mayor of Belize City
"No, he is not the owner he works with the group, the group is Medina's, Medina construction is one of the groups that are behind the parking solutions group."
Cherisse Halsall:
"Ok because we do want to ask about parking solutions, you say it's the Medina, Medina construction, group. Now, if we were to go digging for business certificates?"
Bernard Wagner, Mayor of Belize City
"You are free to do so..."
Cherisse Halsall:
"Would we find any politically affiliated company with those parking metres, the yellow ones?"
Bernard Wagner, Mayor of Belize City
"I'm not sure I couldn't answer that you will have to do your research, you will have to do your research I couldn't, I can't answer that."
And today, we did just that, calling this number to request an interview with the owner.
We were answered by an employee who responded to our first request by saying Quote: "I can bring it to his attention and see if he will be interested in a meeting but I highly doubt it. I'll get back to you."
We then asked for the identity of the mysterious owner to which the response was, quote: "I'm sorry but I'm not at liberty to disclose that information."
Now, we don't know if the mayor was deliberately obfuscating or just plain forgot a very popular name in his circles - that would be the name "Briceno."
We reviewed council minutes from October 27th, 2021 and found that Aaron Briceno and Ivar Medina of Parking solutions made a presentation of their parking meters to the council. Briceno is a cousin of Prime Minister John Briceno while, Ivar Medina is a government appointee to the BWSL board.
A rep from that company told us today that Medina's construction has no involvement with Parking Solutions. And you also saw that a rep from Parking Solutions refused to put us in contact with his boss, who is answerable as the recipient of a public contract.
