Council u-turn on parking charges

With the voices of angry business owners still ringing in their ears, councillors on Wednesday performed a  huge u-turn when they voted against controversial plans to introduce parking charges in town centres on the mainland.

 

North Ayrshire Council had been asked to consider and agree recommendations including the introduction of parking charges and agree the levels to be introduced.

 

There was a third option of not going ahead with the plans but that would need alternative funding.

 

The plans would have seen parking charges across car parks in Irvine, Kilwinning, Saltcoats and Largs. The introduction of parking charges on Arran had been ruled out at an earlier stage.

 

Labour councillor Donald Reid put forward an amendment which would see DPE (decriminalised parking enforcement) introduced but without car parking charges.

 

The £600,000 gap in funding, they said, would be addressed by increasing advertising charges on council assets, amounting to £100,000 and the remaining £516,303 will be funded by the recurring savings from the HSCP repaying their debt to the council.

 

Councillor Reid said the choice was to keep community halls or introduce parking charges.

 

The amendment was carried by 17 votes to 15.

 

Kilwinning councillor Scott Davidson, who stepped down from the Cabinet last month amidst concerns on the charges, abstained.