How you pay the town online for services and what you have to do for daily and permit parking should both become easier, First Selectman Jon Zagrodzky said in his most recent town newsletter column:
This week, I would like to highlight two initiatives we have undertaken to enhance efficiency at Town Hall.
Firstly, we have engaged Clifton Larson Allen (CLA) to assist us in improving our payment systems. The objective is to expand the available payment options to include all forms of electronic and app-based technologies. My hope is that this will facilitate easier payment for services, whether you are paying in person, online, or through an app.
CLA commenced their study last month. During their initial payment system analysis, they uncovered related processes that will need improvement as well. For instance, certain purchases, such as beach stickers, require confirmation of town residency.
They found that the collection of residency information and the sharing of this information between departments is not currently possible. We will need to improve such processes if we want to maximize success of the overall effort. My goal is to make Darien the leading town in Connecticut for efficient, 21st-century payment systems!
The second initiative concerns municipal parking. Currently, we operate a complicated system involving daily and permit parking, which includes unpopular hanging tags and confusing signage and rules.
We have recently partnered with Premium Parking. You may recognize this name – they manage parking at the SoNo shopping mall garage, among other places. I met with them at a municipal conference in December, and I learned that their advanced database technology can enable us to transition from hang tags to a license plate reader system, something other service providers we’ve consulted have been unable to offer.
Additionally, their app can be utilized for both daily parking and the renewal of parking permits. They can also collaborate with us to improve and clarify our signage and parking lot markings. Working with them has real potential for making parking in Darien a lot easier for everyone.
Currently, we are determining which parking lots to target initially. Noroton Heights and Leroy West will be prioritized as they present simpler implementation challenges. We also utilize hang tags in downtown lots; however, I would like to develop a clearer strategy (underway) for enhancing downtown parking first. Longer term, Premium Parking has indicated that they can also assist us in phasing out beach and dump stickers.
As I said, the parking initiative is in its early stages, and it will take some time to implement these changes. Parking affects nearly all of us, and we’re creatures of habit used to doing things a certain way. I will make sure to roll this out cautiously and with ample communication and transparency.
If you have suggestions for either initiative, I want to hear from you: jzagrodzky@darienct.gov
Stay tuned! JZ