Frustration aired at downtown parking feedback session

“People pull in like it is a farmyard,” one man who is a courier said.

As the former parking meter polls were removed, attendees said there is no visual for drivers to gauge where the lines are. Some suggested the city erect posts to mark the front and back of the stall.

“It is hard to see a visual on the ground,” one woman said. “How do you judge a white line on the ground and in the wintertime especially.”

Others scrutinized the lack of loading zones downtown. They said too often people are parked in the zones well beyond the allowed time. However, they admit it is difficult to enforce and said the community safety officers have more pressing matters to attend to.

On top of more loading zones, calls were made for additional handicapped parking spaces to accommodate clients. RV parking was also suggested.

“A lot of our citizens are old,” one local told the table. “It would be nice to have one designated on each block.”

Parking meters were removed years ago as the owners of business vacating downtown pointed to them as driving away customers. Asked for a reintroduction of metered parking, some residents strongly opposed the move, while others believed it might remedy some concerns.

One attendee said his clients already dislike the free two-hour rule.

“I can be in the middle of a meeting with someone and instead of them looking down at their watch to see how much this is costing them, they are watching so long they don’t get a ticket,” he said. “They get angrier at a parking ticket then they do at an accounting bill and that is the way they are.”

Some feared paid parking would drive out customers with less expendable income. But others who complained about too many staff parking in public parking spots and not moving all day felt meters could help clear out the stalls. Some business owners suggested the city make better use empty lots for parking until developers come forward.

They also called for additional signage downtown to help educate people where to park when they come downtown.

One patron welcomed the introduction of permitted parking, saying it is a viable option for people to ensure they have a convenient, safe spot.

“If I could pay and I know I have a spot and it is lit and safe and secure, I would 100 per cent do that,” she said, adding it would free up other public spots, too.

One man who owns lots downtown used for free parking said he understood everyone’s concerns, but said the entire situation is artificial.

“I don’t believe so strongly that we have a parking problem. I think we have an artificially created problem,” he said. “It is the lack of utilization of parking lots already open.”

Director of Planning and Development Jennifer Niesink said she is happy people came out and voiced their concerns and appreciates their concern for parking downtown.

Niesink said part of the reason for the study is to evaluate at what point metered parking becomes worthwhile without hurting business.

“It is interesting to see some businesses were in favour of it already and some were not there yet and some were in favour not at all,” she said.

The two-hour parking limits, she said, appear to be working well. But for those who are staying longer and don’t want to move their vehicle, she said a new lot opening soon with $1 per hour all-day parking should help.

—

tyler.marr@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @JournoMarr

by Tyler Marr

Frustration aired at downtown parking feedback session

What's Trending