Parking woes eat into food biz

After the Madras High Court directed the Greater Chennai Corporation and Police to shut down hotels without adequate parking facilities, hotel owners say that while they can implement these regulations in new hotels, it would be difficult for older establishments, which have grown along with the city. 

M Ravi, President of the Chennai Hotels Association, said it was unfair that only the hotels are targeted and not the other businesses, which lack parking facilities. “From jewellery shops to clothing outlets, many of these businesses have no arrangements for parking. Actually, 90 per cent of banks too lack parking space. 

Why do they want to impose this rule only on hotels? It takes a few hours for people who go shopping but only 20 minutes for a meal? Why shouldn’t other businesses be penalised similarly?” he questioned. The owner of Namma Veedu Vasanta Bhavan chain of restaurants, Ravi said Chennai had close to 10,000 small hotels (1,000—2,000 square feet). 

“Some of these hotels have been around for 30-50 years. In some places like NSC Bose Road and Parry’s Corner, there is practically no space for parking due to congested, built-up area. We can make the changes in newer hotels but please leave the old hotels alone,” he said. R Rajkumar, secretary, Chennai Hotels Association, said the judgment has been misunderstood by the enforcement authorities. 

“The PIL filed listed 16 hotels, violating the rule and doesn’t relate to all the hotels. It has been misinterpreted by the officials. It is impossible to close all hotels,” he said, adding that they will seek legal recourse. However, this is refuted by the counsel for the petitioner, who said the law includes all the hotels violating the rule. 

Senior advocate A Sirajudeen said, “As per the law, the hotels should have an open space and a parking facility. The judgment states that the hotels should be closed until they fulfil these criteria. By principle, this applies to all the other hotels too.” 

NS Krishnamoorthi, who runs the Prems Graama Bhojanam, said the judgement has left many hoteliers high and dry. 

“If a small hotel has to provide parking space, it can only be done by renting a space. With real estate rentals sky high, who will absorb the extra cost? Hoteliers will be forced to reflect this on the pricing, which will drive away the customers. If they bear it themselves, they may not survive. If the restaurants close, it would affect the availability of food, the livelihoods of traders of grains and vegetables and the staff who work at these establishments. It is a real Catch-22 situation,” he rued. 

He pointed out that it is the responsibility of Chennai Corporation to provide parking facilities in congested areas. “The civic body collects taxes from the hotels, for the buildings and the roads. They should be the ones who provide this facility, since most of the hotels without parking space are not new,” he added. 

Many hotels have already received a showcause notice on the lack of parking space. A top official from the Corporation said, “It is the responsibility of the private establishments to grant parking space for their customers. Even before this case, we have been issuing showcause notice to hotels and other establishments which are not following the mandates specified by law. Many hotels have complied, offering valet services or making alternative arrangements. These establishments are functioning without any hassle.”

Another official pointed out that newer hotels must stringently follow this rule. “We are starting with the newer hotels, ensuring they have a parking facility. For the older restaurants, we will work along with the Police and decide what needs to be done to alleviate the traffic congestion,” added the official. 

Meanwhile, around 25 hotels, which are less than 500 square feet, in size have been shut, citing the lack of parking space. A petition highlighting the loss of livelihoods of those running these small eateries has been filed in the Madras High Court, suggesting that hotels limited to 500 square feet should be absolved from this rule. The hearing will be taken up on Tuesday, February 28.