From reading the paper looks like the new council did a good job last night.  I don't know much about the bidding war going on, but sounds like they have it under control.  I was glad to see 75 grand was spared by not having a study done with the downtown parking.  Since their is a deficit in parking it wouldn't it be wiser to just make parking free.    I would think the merchants would be happy that their customers could park and shop freely knowing they won't get a ticket.  If the City cut it out of the budget there wouldn't be a deficit. 

I agree with you Doug.  I think it makes more sense to get rid of the parking meters.  I rush through downtown when I go shopping worrying about the silly parking meter running out.  They probably aren't worth the trouble.  If the city is worried about employees taking up all the closest spots, there's way to combat that.  I'm sure the businesses and city could come up with something.

Kris

Kris and Doug,

Getting rid of the parking meters is not the answer, it would only make it worse.

You would still have to have Parking Meter Patrols to keep downtown employers and employees from taking all the parking spaces that should go to customers.

The problem of employers and employees parking in the "retail" areas has always been bad. You would think store owners would want to leave these parkeing spaces for "real customers", but it seems they are not concerned.

I worked in the downtown area for six years and I visit the downtown often through the week to shop or eat, so I know I what I am talking about. I see retail and banking employees running out to there cars in "customer areas" and moving their cars down to another nearby parking space.

The city needs to end the practice of bagging the meters and offering free limited parking in parking lots and street parking during the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

The program is suppose to "encourage" customers to come down and shop, but it only encouages employers and employees to park in the free spaces during the period.

Downtown employers or owners for the most part are not going to "police" their employees on where they park.

I have been told by the Parking Meter Staff that during this yearly practice, that employees that normally park in outlining parking lots start parking in the "free customer areas", which defeats the purpose of the free parking spaces.

Yes, I have heard from downtown employees that "they are also downtown shoppers" so they are entitled to park in these "free spaces", but doesn't that defeat the purpose of trying to get more customers to come downtown to shop so that maybe more retail stores can stay open to provide employment for their employees.

I believe it was Peoria several years went back to parking meters in the downtown area after removing them several years before that, so removing meters in downtown area as been tried, but it did not work.

I know in the past the city has offered free parking in the parking garage across from the Avon to encourage downtown employees to park there to open up street parking for customers, but many employees have told me that they did not want to walk the two blocks to take advantage of the free parking.

Trust me, if you worked in downtown Chicago and employees were offered free parking, employees would walk ten blocks to take advantage of the parking.

Then we need to live with the deficit, or change the coin slots to dollar bill slots and double the charge.  Maybe everyone is getting to the meters before they expire and less tickets are being written which equals less revenue.

How much would the City lose with free parking?  If your not counting on it you can't lose it.  Free or charge its the same problem with employee and customer parking so do away with the meters and the deficit is gone.  If you can't make money why keep going in the hole?  The City just recouped almost half the deficit just by not paying for a study. 

The problem is the deficit, the problem with employee parking doesn't cost the tax payer and shouldn't even be included in the problem.  Let the Merchants figure out that when the employees use up the good spots it cuts into their business.


Another way is charge the business a fee depending on how many employees it has using parking spots

You can probably tell I am not a downtown shopper but the  deficit still comes out of my pocket some where down the road.

Just rambling no ill intent.

Well downtown Bloomington has this system which I really like so long as I don't screw up and get a ticket:   No parking meters but they have signs that say how long parking is allowed - for example  on the block I often work there are 3 or 4 spaces right by the businesses doors marked 15 minutes the rest are 90 minutes.  They have a meter maid (or whatever PC term we use for that now) who monitors the parkers.  Farther away from the core they have 2 hour parking signs.  The rule is you can;t move your car on the same block and the tickets are $20 bucks.... So you only screw up once.....  They monitor it and sometimes you may get by with parking longer and then sometimes you don't..... but like I said once you screw up you do tend to watch it the next time.

The reason I like it better then ours is is this - you do not have to have a have any change on you to park there.  You just park, note the time and make sure you  move before the time is up and not on the same block.  Also - they have a big parking garage that is 4 hours free a couple blocks from the center of town.     Any way the fine is steep but it really seems to work. 

Sue

Oh I forgot to say they are diaginal spaces so there are quite a few on a block.

Oh I also should have said as a worker when I am using these 90 minutes spots it is never if I intend to be a this location the entire day - too much of a hassle and the fine is too high.  And I rarely have a problem finding a 90 minute spot so I don't think most people are using them that way either.  And it feels like "free parking" if I can get my business done in that time...

Well, I don't shop downtown too often but when I have I've never had a problem finding a parking spot within a reasonable distance.  And I'm one of those lazy people who like to park 10 inches away from the store or business I want to go to.  But I admit, I don't spend enough time down there to know how bad the problem is.

Maybe the major employers downtown should require parking stickers to be displayed in employee's vehicles front windows to make it easy to identify the offenders.  I wouldn't think it would be that hard to enforce.  Caterpillar has their own ticketing system for their parking lot.  If someone parks in an aisle instead of a marked spot, they get a ticket.  If they don't have the sticker showing on their window, they get a ticket.  If they get so many tickets, they get suspended and if they're repeat offenders, they can even get fired.  Just have the employees sign in their employee contract that they must park in the designated areas, if not there will be consequences. 

I also like to sign idea that Sue suggested.  I think that would work in certain areas downtown, like around Merchant Street.

Kris

oops "the sign idea"

No iPhone for me but I did order a new Dell desktop computer.  I'm finally replacing "Big Bertha", my ancient 10 year old desktop, which I can no longer stand.  The flickering CRT screen, which continues to flicker in my brain for a couple hours after looking at it for more than five minutes, the freeze-ups, it's slowness, it's outdatedness... But she has come in handy when my various laptop computers bit the dust or suffered some other calamity over the years.  I needed a computer with more horsepower to handle large video files.  Bertha and my laptop just don't have enough umph.

Now I need to go on a spending freeze for the rest of the year to recoup.