This screenshot from a Fredonia Board of Trustees meeting shows an example of a sign that HONK uses in its system to take payments for parking.

A Canadian-based company recently showed Fredonia officials a system that could replace parking meters in the village.

Mayor Michael Ferguson said HONK “hopefully will be able to help us with our downtown parking situation.” Mia Brown, chief operating officer and Brian Williams, director of enterprise sales for HONK, gave a remote video presentation to the Fredonia Board of Trustees about what the company can offer.

Ferguson asked them to explain the company “and the process we discussed.” Williams responded, “HONK is a mobile payment and platform as well as a parking management platform. What makes HONK unique is this ease of use for the users. There is no required app download. You are able to use our express checkout anywhere, as well as our text to pay checkout. If you would like to use an app, we have one available.”

Williams said HONK offers such a system to municipalities for both on- and off-street parking. “As well, we are able to do a permitting system, whether that’s resident permits or monthly subscriptions… and allow partners to be validated to park in areas for any specified amount of time.

On the back end, the (municipality) has complete access for functionality and is able to change rules and rates as they go on.”

Brown showed an example of a sign they could put out at a parking space. The signs typically have QR codes or a text-to-pay code in order to pay parking fees. There’s no registration of any kind involved, she said.

Ferguson said, “This would also replace the meters that we currently use, many of which don’t work anymore (and) tend to freeze up in the winter.”

Brown replied, “This is weather proof and maintenance free. There’s no collecting coins, there’s no bagging old meters.”

Williams later said that parking customers are “charged a transaction fee that is usually charged to the consumer, it can also be charged to the operator if they see fit. It’s a minimum of 45 cents, up to 5% of the transaction. And then we do have a credit card fee charge which is 2.9% plus 30 cents a transaction. Again, it can be passed on or absorbed by the operator.”

Ferguson commented, “It looks like it’s fairly easy to use. Also saves manpower — police can focus on other things than making sure meters are all working.”

Brown said users receive text messages when they have 15 minutes of time, and a link that allows them to use more time if the municipality allows it. They also get texts when time expires, warning them they could get a ticket if they don’t pay more or move.

Enforcement officers will be able to use apps on their phones to see start and end times on each vehicle, Brown continued. “You have the ability to see and to filter by license plate who the compliant vehicles are, as well as the recently expired vehicles.”

The company works with a couple communities on Long Island as well as Penn State. “The municipalities that we have on the Canadian side are far more robust,” Brown said.

Trustee Jon Espersen asked what happened with people who park and don’t bother to use any of the fee payment methods. Brown replied, “if (parking enforcers) come by and see a plate that is not in their list…they get a ticket because it doesn’t show that they paid.”

The executive went on to say the village can get paid its revenue from parking either weekly or monthly.

After Brown and Williams signed off, Fredonia resident Mark Twichell disparaged the concept they were pushing. He called it “a parking scheme that I feel is wrong headed.”

Twichell is the husband of Trustee Michelle Twichell. He said they recently attended an event in Buffalo and had to park in an area with a system similar to HONK’s. “We got out of the car — there were two other couples, and we all approached the parking meter thing, and none of us could figure out how to make the thing work. Now I don’t have a cell phone, I’m just totally clueless in this matter. but there were three experts with me and none of us could figure (it out).”

It worked out OK for the Twichells in the end: they didn’t get a parking ticket.

“It’s just not a good system to use,” Mark Twichell continued. “It’s discriminatory against myself, who does not own a cell phone — how many other people in the village do not own cell phones, either by choice or financial concerns? What about people that forgot — ‘Oh gee, I left the house and I don’t have my cell phone. I have cash, but I can’t go into the store to buy something.'”

Twichell suggested the program is “an invasion of people’s privacy.”

Ferguson later clarified that there are no current plans to completely end free parking in downtown Fredonia.

“We are not taking away all free parking spaces. Both the east and west (municipal) parking lot would remain free parking spaces for the time being. This would (cover) on street parking,” the mayor said.