The car park is partly owned by East Herts Council and partly by Dicker Mill Investments (DMI), the owner of the adjacent industrial estate. To enable the car park to be managed as a whole and allow for improvements to be made, the Council has granted DMI a licence to manage the Council-owned part of the site.
Once the works are complete, the car park will reopen with a parking management and charging regime operated by a third-party parking management company called Parking Eye Ltd. who have been appointed by DMI. The Council is not employing or appointing the parking management company and will have no involvement in the day-to-day management or enforcement of the car park for the duration of the licence agreement.
Under the new arrangements, customers will be able to park free of charge for up to 90 minutes, after which parking charges will apply. Income from parking will contribute towards the costs of managing and maintaining the car park.
An East Herts Council spokesperson, said: “We recognise that the car park has been in poor condition for some time and that the lack of a management regime has also contributed to issues such as abandoned vehicles and anti-social behaviour.
“The Council has worked with Dicker Mill Investments to enable the car park to be managed as a whole and brought back into good repair. We hope that these changes will provide a better experience for people using the car park and help to tackle some of the anti-social behaviour that has affected the area.
“It is important to be clear that, following the agreement with Dicker Mill Investments, the Council will not be managing the car park or employing the parking management company. The new parking arrangements, including charging and enforcement, will be the responsibility of Parking Eye Ltd.”