I was surprised this week, in chatting with a Mystic business owner, to learn some of the details of a new paid parking plan developed by First Selectwoman Danielle Chesebrough.

Indeed, a draft of the plan has apparently been circulating for some time in select corners of town, alarming some people, like the business owner I talked to, since it calls for $3-an-hour parking fees on the main commercial streets, with no exception made for town residents.

That’s right. No more pulling over for a short stop, to pick up a takeout order, even if you live a half a mile away. No more stopping for free at the post office to get your mail.

Even more worrisome, in this proposal, is that there are no provisions at the outset to exempt guests of residents who live in residential streets where the new $3-an-hour system would be implemented.

There is a footnote that says: “Criteria and execution for potential guest parking pass permit is TBD.”

Sorry, but if I lived on one of the residential streets on Stonington’s side of Mystic — like Willow Street, Haley Street, Forsyth Street, Washington Street or Jackson Avenue — I’d be alarmed that the initial proposal already circulating around town doesn’t promise a guest pass system but rather says it is a “potential” idea to be determined later.

I’d say that suggesting all those residents may not be able to have people visit without paying $3 an hour to park on their residential street is an incredible kick in the teeth to people who already bear the brunt of Mystic tourism.

To be fair, the first selectwoman’s proposal begins with an explanation that says public input will be sought and the plan “could be modified” before it is presented to the Board of Police Commissioners for approval.

Indeed, a copy of the proposal was finally made public, posted on the town’s web site, with a time stamp of 3:15 p.m. Thursday, after I spent the day, starting with a 7:30 a.m. email, to try to ask the first selectwoman to talk about her proposal, a copy of which had come my way.

There is also a public meeting on the topic scheduled, with the notice also posted Thursday afternoon, for 6 p.m. Oct. 3 at the Mystic Fire Department.

Would it ever have been posted, if the newspaper didn’t call?

A copy of it ought to be mailed to every property owner in that neighborhood. That’s what would be required of a developer proposing something with such a drastic impact.

Chesebrough did try one call to me and left a voicemail saying she was in back-to-back meetings all day but would try to respond by email.

I did get a long email just before deadline responding to some of my questions.

It seems that even if the town were to exempt residents from paying the parking fees in the main commercial zone, they would still have to pay a 46 cents fee to the parking vendor.

I asked for more details on the cost of the vendor and how long the town would be committed to a contract, but she didn’t offer any financial details and said no vendor has been selected

I hope residents will demand a lot more specifics next week, before the town signs over control of its streets to a commercial vendor.

I did reach Selectman Ben Tamsky to ask about the plan. He told me he thinks he would be outvoted on the three-person Board of Selectmen if the plan comes up, but he will try to see that residents’ interests are heard.

“It seems like a solution in search of a problem,” he said about the paid parking.

The first selectwoman wrote at length Thursday that she believes the last vote in which residents gave authority for a paid parking system was the result of a long process with public input.

“We all worked together to address concerns,” she said.

I didn’t attend the summer meeting in which a small number of voters attending finally gave authority for paid parking, after two failed votes, although I suggested at the time it might be a good idea to give the town resources to explore.

But it seems like hiring a paid parking vendor, one that controls your street destiny for a long contracted period, should only be a very last resort.

The first selectwoman says police don’t have enough resources to address parking problems. I don’t understand why the town can’t hire some traffic monitors, college students maybe, in the busiest summer months to write tickets for exceeding the posted two-hour limits.

How hard or expensive could that be? Surely the fines would cover the costs. If it was ever tried before, why not try it again? Try hard.

That’s what they do very successfully in nearby Watch Hill, where beach traffic is more problematic than congestion in Mystic.

I would be very careful before committing the town to a contract in which it cedes control of its valuable Mystic street parking for a long period of time, especially at the expense of taxpaying residents, to a profit-motivated parking company.

And the idea of including the public in this discussion seems to be off to a miserable start.

This is the opinion of David Collins

d.collins@theday.com