WILLEMSTAD - More than a hundred business owners from Punda and Otrobanda have signed a petition intended for the Minister of Traffic, Transport, and Spatial Planning Zita Jesus-Leito. They draw her attention to the parking policy in the city. They only want money to be paid for parking between 7 a.m. and 12 noon. The rest of the day should be free to park. Parking should also be free on Saturdays, they say. According to them, that is the only way to get more customers back to the city center.
They state in the petition that they realize that the government is missing out on a lot of money, but if the government does not meet the demands of the business owners, it can lead to layoffs. The association of shopkeepers in Otrobanda, SKO, also said yesterday that the government should not continue with the Parking Authority Curaçao (PAC), because the company has not made money available for the development of the city for ten years. While they are contractually obliged to do so, according to SKO.
Earlier this month, the government announced that PAC will stop collecting parking fees. Shortly afterward it became clear that they will continue. The association of business owners of Otrobanda and Punda demands more transparency in the entire process.