WOOSTER The second attempt to develop a residential subdivision on a parcel of farmland on Melrose Drive suffered a setback when the Wooster Planning Commission voted 4-2 against recommending the project’s rezoning to City Council.
Lemmon Development, a North Canton-based construction firm, is seeking rezoning of the 22-acre plot at 4677 Melrose Drive from R-1 single family residential to R-3 attached housing for a planned 152-unit single story apartment complex.
At the Jan. 7 meeting, Planning Commission Chair Chuck Armbruster and members Kyle Adams, Grant Mason and Mark Weaver opposed the rezoning recommendation while Vice Chair Mike Steiner and Sheree Brownson were in favor.
I-Park costs Rotorua Lakes Council just over $1.7m in a year
16 Dec, 2020 05:00 AM
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Rotorua Residents and Ratepayers secretary Paddi Hodgkiss. Photo / Ben Fraser
Rotorua s controversial i-Park parking system cost the district just over $1.7 million last year, consuming almost 84 per cent of its just over $2m parking revenue.
Despite this, i-Park s drain on parking revenues was not mentioned in Rotorua Lakes Council s 2019/2020 Annual Report.
Both the council and mayor Steve Chadwick say lower revenues are due to Covid-19, and an i-Park spokesman says there has been a significant increase in parking compliance since the system was put in place.
Rotorua s controversial i-Park parking system cost the district council just over $1.7 million last year, consuming almost 84 percent of its just over $2 million parking revenue.
Paddi Hodgkiss is among those fuming over the cost of the i-Park parking contract in Rotorua.
Photo: LDR / Rotorua Daily Post
Despite this, i-Park s drain on parking revenues was not mentioned in Rotorua Lakes Council s 2019/2020 Annual Report.
The council and mayor Steve Chadwick said lower revenues were due to Covid-19, and an i-Park spokesperson said there had been a significant increase in parking compliance since the system was put in place.
The i-Park system was introduced mid-2018 and in February this year, the council waived 2400 disputed parking fines after acknowledging issues with the system.
Rotorua Residents and Ratepayers secretary Paddi Hodgkiss is appalled at the cost of the i-Park contract. In May, emails released to
Local Democracy Reporting under an official information request revealed “absolute and utter frustration” with the parking system, and that the council at one point received about 100 calls a week from people with problems paying for parking. The i-Park contract price tag more than doubled between 2018/19 and 2019/20, from just over $793,000 to more than $1.7m. The council released the figures after a Local Democracy Reporting official information request. Rotorua District Residents and Ratepayers Inc secretary Paddi Hodgkiss said she was “absolutely appalled” about the cost of the i-Park contract and its impact on parking revenue.