A public hearing regarding an ordinance that would ban parking on Hamilton Avenue to make room for bike lanes was on the agenda for Princeton Council’s meeting at Witherspoon Hall Tuesday night. Introduced last month, the ordinance concerns a 2,000-square-foot stretch of roadway between Harrison Street and Snowden Lane, which is to be resurfaced and receive sidewalk and sewer improvements in addition to the bike lanes proposed for both sides of the street.

Mayor Liz Lempert said Monday that she wasn’t sure Council would vote on the measure, since at least one member of the governing body was not expected to be in attendance.

Currently, there are sidewalks on both sides of Hamilton Avenue, and parking is permitted on the south side. Under the proposed ordinance, the 30-foot wide street would be reduced to 20 feet with five-foot bike lanes on either side. Residents and their guests would have to park on neighboring side streets including Stanley Avenue and Leavitt Lane.

The elimination of parking does not sit well with residents, several of whom expressed their opposition at a neighborhood meeting last Wednesday, attended by Mayor Liz Lempert and five members of Council. There were numerous complaints that while notice of the planned sewer and sidewalk work went out last summer, information about the the proposed bike lanes and resulting parking elimination was buried. As a result, they said, few neighbors felt the need to attend the first meeting where the issue was discussed.

“Notice of the meeting had no mention of this,” said Hamilton Avenue resident Phil Abram. “So it was lightly attended. It violates the spirit of transparency in government.”

Sally Fields, a 38-year resident of Hamilton Avenue, commented, “This plan was introduced in an incredibly flawed manner. We should not be here tonight. There was no notice, no input from the neighborhood. We need our parking.” Removing parking would create an additional safety risk for residents because vehicles would travel faster, according to Ms. Fields. “Take away the parking and it’s going to be the Atco Speedway,” she said.

Princeton’s assistant engineer Deanna Stockton said that Hamilton Avenue is designated a major connector in Princeton’s master plan, averaging about 5,000 vehicles a day. In comparison, Prospect Avenue gets about 2,000 a day. The proposal for bike lanes is in keeping with the town’s goal “to get people out of their cars,” said Traffic and Transportation Committee chairman Bob Altman, explaining the group’s endorsement of the plan. The committee considered five alternatives before voting to recommend the no-parking proposal.

When Council introduced the ordinance last month, all members except Patrick Simon, who lives in the neighborhood, voted in favor of its introduction. Mr. Simon, who has spoken to many of his neighbors about the proposal, said the town did not properly notify residents of the plan. He also said that some elderly residents of the street would have a hard time getting in and out of their homes and providing access for health aides and other services they might need.

At the neighorhood meeting last week, Donna Pilenza spoke about her elderly parents, who live on the corner of Hamilton Avenue and Harriet Drive. The couple’s driveway and garage are lower than the entrance to the back of their house, and they are unable to climb steep stairs leading to the entrance from there. Instead, they park on the street to enter the front of the house. “It’s imperative that they have the [street] parking, or they won’t be able to stay there,” Ms. Pilenza said.

Sally Krisman, who lives on Stanley Avenue, said she worries about increased traffic. Hamilton Avenue resident Marzena Torzecka Danilewicz said visitors and residents would have difficulty walking to and from their cars in bad weather. About 60 neighbors signed a petition stating their opposition to the plan.

But there were some who spoke in support of the ordinance. Stanley Avenue resident Eric Schreiber said that while he understands his neighbors’ concerns, he is in favor. “It wouldn’t be a dramatic shift to move parking to the side streets,” he said.

Diane Landis, executive director of Sustainable Princeton, said she understands neighborhood worries but hopes the plan can be worked out in an effort to promote biking and other sustainable practices in the community. Stephanie Chorney, also with Sustainable Princeton, said she feels bike lanes are safer for the town and that while residents’ concerns are valid, the plan is “for the greater good.”