Shouting “Arrogant Grand Hotel,” a dozen local residents joined Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) city councilors yesterday to protest against the hotel for blocking the entrance to a hiking trail and their houses with a parking lot, forcing hundreds of residents to pay exorbitant parking fees.
Until recently, the hotel, which rents a plot of land from the Ministry of Transportation and Communications to use as a parking lot, had charged a flat parking fee.
In January, however, it set up a new parking booth in front of the parking lot and increased its parking fee to NT$80 per hour.
The new policy has forced hundreds of people who hike a trail built by the Taipei City Government or live near the trail to pay the higher fee.
DPP Taipei City councilors Chien Yu-yen (簡余晏) and Lee Ching-feng (李慶鋒) criticized the hotel for “extorting money from local residents” and lashed out at the city's Parking Management Office for “failing residents.”
“Thousands of people hike the trail each day and they have to pay more than NT$300 to park if their hike last more than four hours. The city government hasn’t said a thing,” Chien said at Taipei City Council.
“Where has the city government’s authority gone?” she asked.
Lee said the Jiantan Trail, located at the back of the hotel, is one of several trails established by the city government to promote physical exercise. The trail was also the only way for some people who live behind the hotel to reach their home.
The new parking booth blocks the entrance to the path and local residents are also asked to pay, even if they are just passing through to go home, he said.
Hung Ching-chuan (洪清泉), a local resident who has lived behind the hotel for more than 30 years, said the government had never charged local residents parking fees until Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) assumed office and urged the city government to protect the rights of residents.
“The Hau administration indulged the hotel as it blocked the path and collected parking fees from us. The city government and the hotel should be aware that the beautiful trail and the area behind the hotel are not owned by the hotel,” he said.
In response, Huang Li-ya (黃莉雅), a division chief at the office, said the hotel had violated regulations by collecting parking fees from residents who did not park in the parking lot, adding that the office would handle the matter as soon as possible.
The hotel said it had made a friendly gesture to hikers by offering free parking between 4am and 9:30am, and insisted that its parking fees were lower than at other five-star hotels.
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