Meters to be removed from the village’s business district

Visitors to Bethel businesses and apartment residents on Plane Street can keep their change in their pocket following a decision by the Bethel safety committee to eliminate all 42 parking meters in the business district.

Parking on Plane Street will now be free, however, it will be limited to two hours during business hours.

The move has been under discussion for some time. At an August 2010 Bethel Village Council meeting safety committee chair Russ Whitely said six of the meters were broken at that time. The meters were not considered a significant income for the village. A report at the August meeting stated from Jan. 1, 2010 to July 31, 2010 the village had received $362.62 from the meters. The income averaged out to seven cents a day per meter.

Whitely said all but one of the business owners in the metered portion of Plane Street were in favor of having them removed.

The decision was announced at the Monday, March 14 village council meeting. The meters will be removed and the holes filled as necessary.

Also at the March 14 meeting the council approved the submittal of a request to the Burke Trust to purchase 80 chairs for the Grant Memorial Building. The chairs will be similar to those currently used in the Bethel Community Center, however instead of a maroon color they will be blue. Janice Ireton, council’s Burke Trust committee representative, said she was able to find the chairs on sale for $2,037.60 in blue only.

Village administrator Travis Dotson said the blue chairs were about 50 percent cheaper due to a surplus at a particular seller. Ireton said in addition to the sale price, using two different colors for the chairs would allow the village to track which building the chairs are from.

The chairs will replaced the older chairs on the third floor of the Grant Memorial Building.