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Committee asks staff to step up enforcement after Marlboro Street parking complaints
Summary
A Marlboro Street business owner told the Keene MSFI committee that chronic long-term parking and lack of enforcement block customers and deliveries; staff outlined upcoming street reconstruction and options including loading-zone designation, ParkMobile pay-by-app, or stronger signage, and the committee voted to try enhanced enforcement for one month while staff develop longer-term options.
Terry Bishop, who owns property at 89 Marlboro Street, told the Keene Municipal Services, Facilities & Infrastructure Committee that motorists are parking for extended periods in front of his storefront, limiting customer access and delivery operations. “There is an issue with parking on Marlboro Street,” Bishop told the committee, and he pressed for solutions short of meters, including a larger loading zone and clearer signage.
Don Lucio, the city’s public works director, said the block will be rehabilitated this summer with streetscape changes that will reduce existing parking by one or two spaces and add bike lanes and wider setbacks. “With reconstruction, we are going to lose at least one parking space in this block,” Lucio said, and he described how the current painted spaces do not meet the city’s 30‑foot setback standard near intersections.
Chelsea North, the city’s parking manager, outlined operational options: converting the area to a ParkMobile pay-by-app or text zone that would cover a longer downtown stretch; stronger signage designating a towable 30‑minute zone; or formally designating a loading zone with the caveat that any change still requires periodic enforcement. “Whatever we do,” North said, “we’re going to have to bring parking enforcement staff down Marlboro Street.”
Council members debated immediate enforcement versus interim fixes. Several councillors said the problem is part of a citywide pattern that needs a sustainable solution; others urged direct enforcement in the short term. The chair moved to continue the item for one month and implement “enhanced enforcement” in that period; the motion was seconded and approved unanimously.
What happens next: staff will coordinate periodic enforcement visits to the block over the next month, report back to the committee, and evaluate whether signage, a loading-zone designation, or a ParkMobile zone (with enforcement) should be pursued alongside the planned reconstruction.
