By Charlene Macaulay
Parking spaces in front of a strip of Werribee medical clinics are being hogged by council staff, according to practitioners.
Michael Lentini from Lentini Dental said he arrived at his Princes Highway clinic at 8.40am one morning last week to find that all the carparking spaces along the service lane were already full.
Dr Lentini said the issue had become a concern in the past six months, with no carparking available for staff members and clients for the medical services.
“We have had to transport patients up to Watton Street and Synnot Street to and from appointments, as they are [too] elderly or unwell to walk the distances required,” he said.
Dr Lentini said it beggared belief that council staff could park in the spaces all day when the council had imposed a cap on the number of medical centre staff members who were allowed to park in the on-street spaces.
Rafael Milone, from the Princes Highway Medical Centre, said a recent client suffering from diabetic ketoacidosis could not get a nearby carpark and ended up at Werribee Mercy Hospital.
Wyndham council city operations director Stephen Thorpe said the council would be making contact with the concerned businesses to “notify them about the availability of permits for businesses in the city centre”.
Mr Thorpe said the council was in the process of assessing civic centre parking for its staff.
“It is important to note that on-street parking is available for anybody and there are no restrictions on who can park in particular areas if it is a general, permit-free area,” he said.
The council implemented parking restrictions along nearby Princes Court and Queens Court earlier this year after residents complained that council workers’ cars were blocking driveways and entry to the streets.
