Jim Thorpe Borough Council unanimously shot down a request Thursday night from a downtown pizza shop owner seeking a 15-minute parking spot for use by his drivers making deliveries to customers.

Henry Marin, owner of Antonio’s Pizza at 43 Broadway, submitted the request to the borough, but Councilman Jay Miller quickly voiced his concerns when the matter came up for discussion Jim Thorpe’s monthly meeting.

“We have parking issues to begin with, so I don’t think we should be doing anything like this on Broadway or West Broadway,” Miller said.

Last week, council had left the door open to granting Marin a 15-minute spot, but charging him an annual fee for it, or creating a 15-minute spot that could be used by customers for any downtown business.

In his discussion with Borough Police Chief Joe Schatz, Marin cited several other businesses that have quick in-and-out parking spots.

The Inn at Jim Thorpe has a spot designated as a loading/unloading zone for guests. Molly Maguire’s Pub and Steakhouse also has a loading/unloading zone.

Jim Thorpe Neighborhood Bank has two customer parking spots downtown.

3 Kids Market and Eatery in the Heights also has a short-term parking spot, though there are no meters in that area of the borough.

“I went over to Broadway a couple times this week just to watch that parking situation and I agree with Jay, I don’t see how we can grant the request,” Councilwoman Joanne Klitsch said. “We would be opening up a can of worms.”

Permit parking

In other parking news, Borough Manager Maureen Sterner said permit-parking applications for West Broadway and High Street residents should be available by mid-December.

Earlier this year, council approved a permit parking ordinance that allows residents of Broadway, West Broadway, High Street, Race Street, Hill Road and Quarry Street to purchase an annual permit that allows them to park from 5-415 W. Broadway or anywhere on High Street without receiving a ticket. Motorists who do not have a permit and park in those areas would be subject to a $50 fine. The ordinance does permit the borough to issue guest passes valid for a 24-hour period.

Last week, Sterner said the annual fee for a permit would be set at $15, while a guest pass would be $5.

“I’ve seen some comments about why should residents have to pay to park in front of their home,” Miller said. “All we are charging is an administrative fee for the borough’s time in issuing the permits and managing it. We are not charging someone $1,000 a year to park in front of their home.”

Borough officials said the goal of the ordinance is to open more spots for local residents on West Broadway and High Street.