By Cecilia Nasmith

For the next two weekends in downtown Cobourg, the parking lot at 202 Second St. will be an attended paid-parking lot.

The request was tendered by the owner of that property (which the town leases for use as a parking lot) and, when the item came up at Monday's special council meeting, no written reports or motions were included in the agenda.

The motion to grant the request came from Mayor Lucas Cleveland, who said that holders of town-issued parking passes will have them honoured on these occasions.

“It's just that they will be allowed to charge on top of those,” Cleveland said.

Councillor Adam Bureau protested that the request comes without sufficient advance notice to give the public time to understand what is going on and why. Deputy Mayor Nicole Beatty agreed.

“My only other concern is not knowing if a flat rate will be charged for the weekend vs. an hourly rate, and how we would monitor that,” Beatty added.

Though Cleveland could not offer specifics, he did offer a reason for his motion.

“We are in a negotiation period with the developers,” he said.

“We are, as a council, still respecting the parking passes with this motion, still providing public parking during the weekend. We are simply allowing our staff and the developers an opportunity to find common ground and to move forward.

“This is a reasonable request from the developers, who have seen their interest rates doubling and who have seen carrying costs on this property move up. Their ask is not necessarily to change the situation, but for them to have the opportunity to make money in addition to the parking passes and the prearranged agreements.”

The mayor acknowledged that it will be difficult for individuals to adjust to the news on such sort notice, but said this is not truly a new item before council.

“It's an item we have been working with and trying to solve for several months and this is simply a two-weekend opportunity to show good faith from this council that we are trying to find a solution that meets all parties. It's not an attempt to side with anyone. It's simply an attempt to find the best possible solution for all parties involved.”

Councillor Miriam Mutton pointed out that not everyone is on social media, and urged an immediate mass mailing to get the news out.

“I don't think we can contact all the pass holders in a meaningful way within three to four days,” Director of Public Works Laurie Wills said, adding that a mass mailing costs several thousand dollars.

Another hold-up, Chief Administrative Officer Tracey Vaughan noted is the lack of solid information – whether there will be flat rates or hourly rates, for example.

Wills envisions a situation with in-person attendants who will honour existing passes, and who will ensure appropriate signage is visible – though she acknowledged that just driving up and seeing the sign is not the best way to find out about the new arrangement.

Bureau pointed out that the electronic passes have no tangible proof for the holder. He envisions people driving in, saying they have a parking pass and left it at home – essentially leaving the attendants to run the lot on an honour system.

Bureau had asked for a recorded vote and, when it came, Cleveland's motion passed with the votes of Mutton and Councillors Brian Darling and Randy Barber in support. Bureau voted against it, along with Beatty and Councillor Aaron Burchat.