[Vision2020] RRe:Parking, Businesses are not owed one City parking space, NOT ONE, Quite your complaining.

[Donovan Arnold]

"Many downtown merchants view the downtown Moscow parking situation as 
serious and threatening to their businesses. Without attempting to 
assign blame, here are some suggestions:"--Robert

Here is my suggestions to businesses that think they are losing business
because of the city not providing them enough parking downtown.

1) Buy your own damn parking like every other business.

2) Buy your own damn parking like every other business.

3) Buy your own damn parking like every other business.

The taxpayers pay for the maintains and enforcement of Free
parking downtown. Business owners downtown don't pay taxes on
the parking lots downtown. Therefore, they don't have any right to
complain. 

Every time I hear a business owner complain that, I the taxpayer am
not giving them enough tax free parking for their business, I write
the business name down and stop shopping there.

Parking is not downtown for the financial gain of private business
owners. It is there for the convenience of the residents of Moscow that
pay taxes for the parking. It is not the city taxpayers obligation to
purchase and maintain real estate downtown for private investors.

IF adding parking spaces results in more cash for the business owner,
would it not be in their best interest to purchase some parking?

This is so disrespectful to all business owners elsewhere in town from
that have to buy parking, not get free parking, and having to pay no taxes on
that parking space, How dare they demand that we shell out more for their personal
financial gain? How insulting. Go screw yourself, I will go to a business
that cares enough to invest in providing convenience and comfort for their customs.
Down with businesses that blame everyone else for their problems and expect the
government to solve their problems for them.

To the businesses that complain about parking; The city don't own you one 
damn parking spot, not one.  

Best,

_DJA

  

robertandjill at verizon.net wrote:  I tried to post this yesterday, didn't seem to go through.  Here are some good thoughts on alleviating the parking situation.

DRAFT
A MODEST PROPOSAL TO IMPROVE 
DOWNTOWN MOSCOW PARKING
Bill Parks
September 14, 2006


Many  downtown merchants view the downtown Moscow parking situation as  serious and threatening to their businesses. Without attempting to  assign blame, here are some suggestions: 

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Limit all downtown on-street parking to two hours.

Although  making parallel parking spots one hour and angle parking two hour has  many advantages, it might be too confusing for visitors. Two hour  parking provides plenty of time for many downtown patrons. Those that  need more time could park in the three-hour Jackson Street lot. 

2. Increase enforcement by penalizing drivers for removing or altering chalk marks.  

Here is a quote from the Eugene, Oregon city code: 

5.275  Authority to Mark Vehicles. A police officer parking control officer or  community service specialist may mark motor vehicles that are parked,  standing, or stopped to aid in the enforcement of parking regulations.  Such mark shall be made by chalk upon the tires of the vehicle or by  some other convenient method that will not injure or damage the  vehicle. Marks so placed shall not be interfered with, concealed or  obliterated or erased by any person other than a police officer,  parking control officer, or community service specialist while the  vehicle remains parked, standing or stopped at the place where the  vehicle is marked. 
(Section 5.276 added by Ordinance No. 19621, enacted June 12, 1989)

Such  a change, particularly if it carried with it a citation more severe  than an overtime violation might help in reducing the incidence of  downtown scofflaws. 

3. Make it a violation to park on the same street for more than two hours. 

This  proposed ordinance or code would keep a driver from re-starting the  time by moving the car up and down the street, but would allow the car  to be moved to another street to re-start the parking limits. Although  speaking of blocks instead of streets, the Eugene Code addresses the  issue. 

5.265 Parking Time Limit. Maximum parking time limits  designated by sign for a block shall apply to parking in the block not  merely to parking in one or more particular parking spaces in the  block. No person in charge of a vehicle may extend the permissible time  for parking the vehicle in the block by causing the vehicle to be moved  from one parking space to another in the block without being removed  from the block. The operator of the vehicle or its registered owner  shall be regarded as prima facie in charge of it. 
(Section 5.265 amended by ordinance No. 16387. enacted February 14, 1972)
It  is important that downtown parking be reserved for local business  patrons, and not become a “backdoor” route for providing employee  parking. Forcing those that work downtown to park outside the downtown  area will benefit the entire city by improving downtown business  health. A healthy downtown business district needs parking regulations  that cause citizens to obey both the letter and the spirit of the  regulations. 


4. Accommodate downtown residents and others by allowing overnight angled parking.

There  are about 130 downtown residents (about the same as New Saint Andrews  Students) yet their needs are seldom considered. In addition to  residents, there may, from time to time, be downtown revelers that  should not drive their cars until the next morning. The city street  department may complain that it needs to have no overnight parking to  facilitate snow removal. Since there will be no overnight parallel  parking, angle parking can be signed for snow removal and the two-hour  parking allowance insures that by 10:00 AM all angle parking cars will  be moved. It is time to do something good for downtown residents. The  street department could work out an accommodation with downtown  residents’ needs. 

5. Rent reserved parking spaces for  businesses that need to have a delivery vehicle or realtors that might  need to have a vehicle ready to transport clients to a property.

The  city should make some accommodation for businesses that do not have  their own parking spaces but need immediate access to a vehicle in the  normal course of their business. The number of spaces available for  each business should probably be limited to some fraction of those  employed in the business. For instance, a rented space might be made  available for every five employees or fraction thereof. The rented  spaces can be flagged for certain vehicles and others parking in the  space would be subject to penalties. License plate numbers could be  used to validate authorized users. (See below). 

6. Purchase optical character recognition (OCR) equipment for parking enforcement. 

OCR  software and hand held computers speed up parking enforcement and  drastically reduce errors. They will also eliminate many other traffic  problems. Stolen cars, offenders, etc. can all be easily identified and  appropriate actions taken. Revenues from parking tickets should  increase until those parking in downtown are convinced to obey  regulations.

7. Increase peripheral parking opportunities by adding parking lots. 

Revenue  from downtown parking and rented spaces may not be enough to provide  sufficient revenue to purchase and maintain more parking lots. The  University of Idaho now requires permits in formerly free university  lots and also has been allowed to rent parking on city streets to  fraternity and sorority residents. As a result, frugal students, staff  and faculty who formerly could park around campus are more likely to be  parking on residential streets between campus and downtown. Moscow  should request that all or most of the university’s purple permit  revenue be turned over to Moscow for purchase of additional parking  lots between downtown and the university. Some would consider it  unfortunate that the university has removed parking for Moscow citizens  that pay local taxes and instead reserved the parking for students that  pay no local taxes. This imbalance needs to be redressed. Additional  revenues from parking violations, reserved spaces, and U of I purple 
 parking permits and other sources should be earmarked for parking lots  and enforcement costs. 



 


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