THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, FEbRuARy 21, 2025 Page 3 Resident parking sticker system to be reviewed by City Council A By Neil Zolot Committee for 2026 Resident Stickers is being formed to revamp the resident parking sticker system. “We have to attack residential parking,” Police Sergeant and Traffi c Commission member Joseph Gaff said at a Special Meeting of the City Council on parking on Tuesday, February 11. “It will be quite a task. We did what we did with commercial parking and the next step will be the residential program,” a reference to reducing the number of stickers for commercial vehicles from 501 in 2023 to 233 in 2024.” In 2024, 179 disability spots were also eliminated by identifying who was using those parking spaces. “It worked well,” Gaff reported. “It may not sound like much, but 179 is pretty good. Every spot helps.” Overall, however, 26,551 stickers were issued in 2023 and 27,023 in 2024. They are free in January and February, but after March 1 cost $10 per year. To get one, people must show a valid registration indicating the vehicle is garaged in Everett, meaning parking excise taxes are paid in Everett. Commercial stickers cost $300. The Committee will consist of four members of the Traffi c Commission, two City Councillors and one person each from the Engineering Dept., Code Enforcement, the Fire Dept., the Legal Dept. and Transportation Department. The fi rst meeting will be March 6 and a new program has to be determined by the end of October to meet deadlines to print new stickers for 2026. “We have to set our sights on what we want to do and what we can do legally,” Gaff said. “We’ll get information from other communities, but Everett is a special place. We don’t have the space other cities do.” The fi rst step will be determining how many legal parking spaces there are “so we know if we’re giving out too many stickers,” Gaff explained. That will include determining the number of street space permits that will be issued to each building, be it a single-family home or a multifamily one. The Committee will factor in the number of bedrooms, the existence of a driveway and tenant access to it to fi gure it out. “Limiting the number of resident stickers per structure is something we need to look at,” Ward 5 Councillor Robert Van Campen feels. “We have to motivate people to use driveways. Limiting the number of stickers per structure will.” “We’ve got to get people to use their driveways, especially during snowstorms,” Gaff Wayne A. Matewsky Justice of the Peace / Notary Public (617) 389-5106 Complimentary Notary Service for Everett Seniors SABATINO/MASTROCOLA INSURANCE AGENCY 519 BROADWAY EVERETT, MA 02149 Auto * Home * Boat * Renter * Condo * Life * Multi-Policy Discounts * Commercial 10% Discounts * Registry Service Also Available Sabatino Insurance is proud to welcome the loyal customers of ALWAYS READY TO SERVE YOU: Our Staff are, Emma Davidson, Jeimy Sanchez, Josephine Leone, Marie D’Amore, Rocco Longo, Z’andre Lopez, Anthony DiPierro, Darius Goudreau, Laurette Murphy, Danielle Goudreau and Tina Davidson. PHONE: (617) 387-7466 FAX: (617) 381-9186 Visit us online at: WWW.SABATINO-INS.COM agreed. He added that, contrary to public opinion, painting parking lines on streets will actually increase the number of spaces because cars will be parked in a more orderly fashion. “It can add spots if everyone parks correctly,” he said. Eff orts have been made to PARKING | SEE PAGE 4
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