New York City officials are weighing whether to convert many of the city’s free street parking spaces into metered spots as the administration of Mayor Zohran Mamdani confronts a $5.4 billion budget shortfall.

The proposal surfaced as City Hall explores potential sources of revenue while grappling with the growing fiscal gap, which critics say has been driven by the mayor’s expansive social spending agenda.

First Deputy Mayor Dean Fuleihan indicated last week that the idea of charging for parking in areas that are currently free — or introducing “dynamic pricing” that adjusts based on demand — is under consideration as officials look for ways to narrow the deficit.

“Yes, we should be looking at all those things,’ Fuleihan said at Thursday’s CityLaw breakfast event.

Despite that acknowledgment, Fuleihan cautioned that such measures alone would not solve the city’s massive budget problem.

“But it’s not going to address the $5.4 billion problem,” he acknowledged.

He later reiterated that the proposal remains only a topic for discussion at this stage.

“I said it’s a very good policy question, and one that needs to be discussed,” he later clarified of the meter issue.

A study by the Center for an Urban Future estimated that dramatically expanding the number of parking meters throughout the city could bring in as much as $1.3 billion in annual revenue.

According to the report, roughly 800,000 of New York City’s more than 3 million street parking spaces — about 25 percent — currently require payment at meters.

The analysis suggested that an additional 750,000 parking spots would need to be converted to metered spaces to generate that level of income while also easing traffic congestion.

The possibility of expanding paid parking drew immediate criticism from elected officials representing neighborhoods outside Manhattan.

“Like the Mayor’s proposal to hike our property taxes, this is just another way to shakedown outerborough working and middle class households, who need cars to get around because they don’t have adequate transportation options. ” said Staten Island GOP City Councilman David Carr.

Carr’s criticism comes as Mamdani has warned that property taxes could rise by nearly 10 percent if Governor Kathy Hochul does not approve higher taxes on wealthy residents to help fund the administration’s agenda.

“How exactly would this make New York City more affordable?” Carr continued.

Queens Republican Councilwoman Joann Ariola also blasted the proposal, arguing that expanding parking meters would unfairly burden residents who depend on their cars.

“another tax on the middle and working classes.

“Not every New Yorker has the luxury of living in places like Astoria or Manhattan where there are plenty of transit options available,” she said.

“Some of us rely on our cars to get around, and I encourage the Mayor to come out to South and Southeastern Queens and take a look around before he decides to levy this burden on working families who just want to park near their homes.”

In a statement to The Post, Mamdani emphasized that his preferred solution for addressing the deficit remains raising taxes on high-income residents.

“Our administration is committed to filling the budget gap by ending the drain on New York City and taxing the rich,” the mayor said.

“As my First Deputy Mayor said yesterday, you do not fill a $5.4 billion budget gap through parking meters, we need structural change at the scale necessary to put our city back on firm financial footing.”

{Matzav.com}