WHITE RIVER JUNCTION — The downtown parking meters installed late last year are set to power up on Aug. 24 to promote more turnover in Hartford’s high-demand areas.
The Town of Hartford is introducing a new metered parking system as a way to prevent all-day parking in front of businesses primarily on North and South Main Streets. Visitors can pay by phone or stop at any of the 15 sidewalk stations.
The cost is $1 per hour– which can be split into 15-minute increments– with a two-hour total limit in any spot. Cash, credit card, text-to-pay, or the ParkMobile app are valid forms of payment, and there is no need to display a receipt in the windshield, according to an informational page on the town’s website.
Hartford Police will enforce the new regulations set from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, using the same digital system that Hanover uses. The cost of a parking violation ticket is $11.
Specifically, Community Service Officer Zachary Guthrie-Lloyd, who serves as deputy town health officer and is also responsible for animal control and parking enforcement, will patrol regularly to “ensure meters are functioning properly, assist users who may have questions, and issue violations when necessary.”
Back in 2020, voters shot down a proposal to use $160,000 of local option tax to introduce a meter parking system, 2,088 to 906.
In October 2024, the Hartford Selectboard voted unanimously to use about $145,000 of the funds the town received through the American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, to purchase 16 kiosks anyway.
Based on calculations from last summer, the town anticipates a combined revenue of over $236,000 annually from the 210 metered parking spots.
A portion of the revenue may go toward operational costs and part of the enforcing officer’s compensation, director of planning and development Laurie Hirshfield told the Valley News in June.
Those with government-issued accessible placards or accessible license plates for their vehicles are “exempt from paid parking requirements and posted parking time limits,” according to the website. Parking illegally in a handicap zone can lead to a $50 parking ticket.
The parking meter zones include North Main Street from the intersection with Currier Street to the intersection with Joe Reed Drive; South Main Street from the intersection with Joe Reed Drive to 241 South Main Street; Gates Street; Church Street; Currier Street; Town Square parking lot; Railroad Row; and Prospect Street.
All-day, free parking remains available at the South Main Street Lot, Maple Street Lot, North Main Street Lot, and Quechee Historic Mill District Lot.
