Bibou Vs. The Philadelphia Parking Authority

Philly's favorite French bistro, Bibou, is pretty pissed off at the Philadelphia Parking Authority. Co-owner Charlotte Calmels told Eater that the PPA changed the available free parking time at the municipal lot next door at 1012 E. Passyunk Avenue without any notice to the local businesses.

"The city changed the free parking from 3 hours until 10 p.m. to 2 hours until midnight without so much as a letter or warning today," Calmels told Eater. "The woman who owns the hairstylist shop down the street had to tell us about it, otherwise we wouldn't have known. It's ridiculous."

Calmels said that turning a table of four at their establishment usually takes at least two hours, but normally longer. In many cases, diners already get tickets with the three hour limit, and it'll be much worse now. She worries that many of their regulars will choose not to come now since parking is very limited in the neighborhood, which is heavily residential. There aren't many pay lots available, either.

A representative for the PPA told Eater that the neighborhood association collected signatures and requested the shorter time limit, but didn't tell the businesses that would be affected by the change because there's no policy in place to do so.

"The amount of revenue brought in by parking tickets must seriously outweigh the amount of money we give the city in taxes, I guess," Calmels said. "Otherwise, why would they want to make it even more difficult for all of the businesses in the area? It's counter-productive."

· All Bibou Coverage [~EPHI~]