STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The days of free parking in a tucked-away St. George lot are over. A recent ownership change has brought the promise of stricter enforcement — and a price tag — to the once loosely monitored North Shore parking site.
As some longtime drivers on the North Shore recently noted, the parking lot on Wall Street, between Academy Place and Stuyvesant Place in St. George, has been one of the better-kept secrets for parking on Staten Island.
Regular users said the lot was sometimes unattended, particularly around nights and weekends. The savvy driver could slink into the lot and park without paying, one driver said.
Recently, however, a new company has acquired the lot. According to a business license posted on site, the company Metropolis recently took over the parking site.
Signs now advertise parking at $10 for the day, with applicable fees. Drivers are asked to scan a QR code when parking, and are warned that the failure to pay will be enforced 24/7.
After scanning the QR code, the Metropolis web page said that parking at 25 Wall St. would be approximately $11.50 for 16 hours.
Off to the side of the parking lot at 25 Wall Street in St. George is old signage noting the name of the former lot operator, Allied St. George.(Advance/SILive.com | Mike Matteo)
Other, older signs were still visible at the Wall Street lot, bearing the name Allied St. George LLC, a former site operator.
A representative for the company confirmed that Metropolis took over operations at the lot in November.
According to a recent report from CNBC, Metropolis is a company that uses AI to identify vehicles and process transactions without a physical presence.
Metropolis acquired the parking company SP+ last year, according to a press release on the company website. SP+ operates the Empire Outlet parking lot at 55B Richmond Terrace. According to signage posted at the 24-hour parking lot, the business is operating as “SP+, a Metropolis Company.”