Lismore City Council have released a statement today saying that all-day paid parking along Hunter and Dalziel streets and time-limited parking along Weaver and McKenzie streets and Laurel Avenue will be re-introduced from Monday, 19 October 2020.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Lismore City Councillors voted in April to ease parking restrictions around the Base Hospital for a six-month period for healthcare workers and the general community.

Now that the six-month period has ended, parking restrictions around the hospital will return to normal from 19 October.

Naturally, not everyone is happy about the decision as the COVID-19 pandemic still surrounds everyday life. This is apparent when schools are sending letters to parents saying that students with allergy symptoms will still need a negative test result to return to school.

The Health Services Union is calling on Lismore City Council Mayor Isaac Smith to intervene urgently this Tuesday (13/10) to retain free on-street parking around Lismore Base Hospital.

HSU NSW Secretary Gerard Hayes said Mayor Smith needed to introduce a mayoral minute at this Tuesday’s council meeting that would extend free parking.

“Health workers at Lismore Base have been under extreme pressure this year, yet they have tirelessly focused on keeping the community safe and healthy. The least they should expect is to be able to park for free when they go to work,” Mr Hayes said.

“Parking costs can be a significant expense for all health workers – and especially for lower-paid workers like cleaners and kitchen staff.

“Although the response to the pandemic has been pleasing so far, we are hardly out of the woods. Even if the virus does not take hold in New South Wales, the economic pressures being felt will only grow worse in the coming months.

“We need to do everything we can to ease the stress on patients, visitors and staff. It’s exactly the wrong time to be slugging people with parking costs when they need to be at Lismore Base Hospital.

Lismore City Councillor Darlene Cook has said she will table an urgent motion in tomorrow nights council meeting to defer the start of the parking restrictions around the Base Hospital.

"We need to get more and updated information on how much it has cost us as a council and how much it will cost us in the future," Cnr Cook said, "we need a workshop so we can see exactly what we are dealing with then make an informed decision in the November Council meeting."

"We need to determine what is best for the community and our budget."

The Lismore App will have the outcome from tomorrow nights council meeting first thing Wednesday morning.