SKANEATELES -- Corrosion and rust have plagued parking meters in Skaneateles for years. Now, for the fourth time in five years, more than 150 meters that line village streets are being replaced.
“I think the corrosion is a kind of crazy, they're not that old,” said Evan Dreyfuss who lives in Skaneateles. Dreyfuss is right, they are only about a year old. But Police Chief Lloyd Perkins say corrosion is common in the North East, because of both the weather, and all the salt used to clear winter roads.
Changes made by the Environmental Protection Agency also play a factor. “This all started when the EPA changed the rules about what paints they (parking meter companies) can use,” Perkins said. “They had a very good corrosive resistant paint that they had used before, that they are not allowed to use anymore."
This corrosion not only chips the paint away, it can also jam up the locks on the meters. Perkins says officers have drilled into 4 or 5 of the meters, in order to collect the coins inside. Despite the damage, many drivers we spoke with didn’t notice any problems, because the meters still work properly.
"It's more of a nuisance because that meter is down, you can't use it, costs us money because people can't park there,” said Perkins.
The mayor says the meter company is standing behind it's product, and fixing it at no cost to the taxpayer. "The manufacturer has indicated to us that they are trying a new pre-treatment process on the metal, and it's their belief that it will correct the problem,” said Village Mayor Robert Green.
Green says he doesn’t expect the replacement process to be an inconvenience to drivers, because it only takes about 15 minutes to install a new meter. The work is expected to begin in the fall.
