Valet Parking in Huntington Village Starts June 20

Beginning Friday, June 20, at 9 a.m., drivers can have their cars valet parked in Huntington Village.

The free valet parking will be in effect from 9 a.m. Friday to 1 a.m. Saturday and again from 9 a.m. Saturday to 1 a.m. Sunday in a portion of the municipal parking lot between New and Green Streets, south of Main Street.

The program will be administered by LAZ Parking New York/New Jersey, under contract with the Town of Huntington.

The initiative is the latest in what the town describes in a news release as “a series of measures aimed at improving parking in Huntington Village.”  

The program is being funded by the consortium Supervisor Petrone formed to explore Village parking options. That  consortium includes the Town, the Town of Huntington Economic Development Corp., the Huntington Village Business Improvement District, the Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce and the Paramount Theater.

According to the town, experts have advised he consortium that valet parking could increase the capacity of the lot, which currently has 215 spaces, by as much as 40 percent.

Initially, the valet parking will be in effect in a portion of the lot, with the possibility of expanding the area if demand warrants. The program could also expand to additional days, depending on the response and need.

“Valet parking should provide an attractive option for motorists who do not want to spend time searching for a parking space,” Supervisor Frank Petrone said. “This is one more way the consortium is trying to make parking easier and more convenient for people to shop, eat or take advantage of the many cultural opportunities in the Village.”  

Other recent measures have included activating multi-space parking pay stations on Main Street and New York Avenue; changing the hours for which metered parking is active (10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday-Saturday); designating a primary and secondary metered parking zone, with different per-hour parking rates; and increasing to three hours in the maximum a vehicle can remain parked at a spot. The Town has prepared a brochure, available at participating merchants in the Village and on the Town’s website, which includes a summary of the changes, directions on using the multi-space meters and a map of municipal parking lots in the Village. A contract is also being finalized with Parkmobile USA to offer a smart phone app to pay for the metered parking.

What do you think of the new parking measures in town? Are you finding it easier to find parking in Huntington? Tell us in the comments.