The Port Authority is staring down independent parking lot owners, demanding the thriving businesses pay for the privilege of operating near area airports.

The PA, which operates Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark airports, fired off a letter in March to nearly 30 off-airport parking businesses. They want them to fork over an “annual fee” of $200 per parking space.

That’s a tax by any other name, say miffed parking lot operators who are balking at the fee.

“We’re out of business at that point,” said Jim Sparro, co-owner of JFK Long Term Parking, which opened in June.

Sparro’s lot has 408 spaces, meaning the fees would cost him $81,600 a year.

“We’re trying to reach a compromise,” Sparro, 60, said. “But if you don’t go along with them, then there’s retaliation.”

Industry officials say parking lot owners pay access fees at other airports, including Atlanta and Dallas/Fort Worth, which charge businesses 10% of their gross revenue.

Port Authority officials said they were negotiating with the businesses and hoped to reach an agreement on “an equitable fee structure.” While the haggling over fees crawls on, customers in Queens and Newark are still flocking to off-site lots for discounts.

“It’s a competitive price and it’s convenient,” said Ryan Murphy, 32, of Bronxville, who travels every weekend for business and recently started using JFK Long Term Parking.

Jose Villavicencio, 48, from Woodside, Queens, said he was the first customer at SmartPark JFK, when it opened last year.

“It’s the best price,” Villavicencio said. “I was so happy.”

Both SmartPark JFK and JFK Long Term Parking charge $13.95 a day plus tax, and provide a van to and from terminals. The PA’s long-term lot at Kennedy Airport is large and requires passengers to take a train or a bus after parking. The PA charges $18 for the first day and $6 for each additional eight-hour period.

In the March letter, the Port Authority said it had control of all commercial enterprise at the airports, and even threatened to charge van drivers for the independent lots with a crime. The agency said that if operators didn’t get prior approval, shuttling passengers to the terminals could be deemed “criminal trespass.”

The issue is not only about control, it’s also about money. PA spokesman Ron Marsico said the agency has “seen steep revenue decline during the recession.”

Some owners stand ready to chip in.

“I don’t have a problem paying my fair share,” said Adam Smith, president of SmartPark JFK.

But paying the Port Authority would be like paying a rival.

“They are my No. 1 competitor,” Smith said.

(Source: NY Daily News)