New London — Mayor Michael Passero said Thursday that he intends to recommend to City Council the appointment of Carey E. Redd II, associate director of the Hartford Parking Authority and a nationally known expert in the field, to a director-level position as head of the city parking authority.

Passero said Redd met with the City Council in executive session previously, and he was expecting the body to approve the appointment March 7.

Redd, who plans to move to New London, will be directly accountable to the mayor for all parking decisions, and he will be a city employee.

Previously, the parking director had been an employee of ProPark, which is contracted by the city to run its Water Street parking garage.

"This gives us a lot more jurisdiction, a lot more tools," Passero said.

Passero could not say what Redd's compensation would be until the position is finalized, but noted that it will be in the same range as the salary of Joe Celli, the previous parking director, and it will be coming out of self-sustaining parking revenues.

He said Redd's expertise, which includes being president of the New England Parking Council, likely will allow the city to collect more revenues to further offset the cost of the position.

"He's a parking guru," Passero said.

Tammy Daugherty, director of the city's Office of Planning and Development, noted that Redd would be working on a citywide parking plan, not just a solution for downtown issues.

"You want people to camp out in certain areas and turn over in other areas," Daugherty said. "It's a bit of a science and an art."

Daugherty first met Redd at a New England parking conference in Hartford and was immediately impressed by his personality and grasp of the subject.

She said Redd, who could not be reached for comment, was intrigued by the challenge of creating a parking plan for New London basically from scratch.

"It's universally acknowledged that we don't have a successful parking policy in New London," Daugherty said. "No one is invested in the status quo."

Daugherty said any changes in parking policy will be subject to public feedback, and added that Redd finds communication and customer service to be a key part of parking strategies.

But she acknowledged that Redd likely will recommend parking meters in some areas, including the latest technologies that allow visitors to add minutes to a meter directly from their smartphones.

"I would think there is going to be paid parking downtown," Daugherty said.

The city currently has two-hour free parking in most areas, including on downtown streets.

But businesses have complained about out-of-towners being driven away by parking tickets for overstaying the two-hour limit as well as being concerned that city residents hog spots on the street.

Passero said current parking policies are "knee-jerk" and "not based on best practices in the field."

As for why a city of only 6 square miles needs a parking director, Passero said the issues are complicated in a densely populated area, and Daugherty added that solutions need to be determined on a block-by-block basis depending on what outcomes are being sought.

"On-street parking is a resource," Daugherty said. "It's not a terrible thing to manage that resource."

Passero and Daugherty said parking can be used as an economic development tool — an effort that Redd has been engaged in through a "park and dine" initiative in Hartford that offers free parking after 5 p.m. combined with 20 percent off a restaurant dinner check on certain days of the week.

Meanwhile, revenue from parking collected on other days could be set aside to improve city infrastructure, including sidewalks, Daugherty said.

"He's a genius," Daugherty said of Redd. "He is going to put New London on the map."

l.howard@theday.com

Twitter: @KingstonLeeHow