About 25 people attended a public meeting on parking in Clarkston, Oct. 13.
‘We’re really just trying to get input,? said Mayor Joe Luginski. ‘Responses range from people saying the parking situation is horrendous to the opposite end, people who don’t see a parking problem.?
Erich Lines, who owns the Union restaurant with Curt Catallo, said he doesn’t see a parking problem at the moment.
‘We’re fortunate in that customers find their way to us,? Lines said. ‘We let our guests know when the off times are. We explain the best times, when parking easy and the line is shorter.?
The market will decide if Clarkston has a parking problem, Catallo said.
‘We’re not in business is people aren’t coming,? he said.
Leanna Haan, owner of Picasso’s Grape Vine on Main Street, said her customers register in advance, so she can provide information on parking.
‘Some have come in late for class because they had a hard time parking, but they come back,? she said. ‘Are there people who don’t come back? I don’t know. That’s kind of the challenge.?
‘I don’t think it’s a real problem right now, but its coming,? said Bob Roth, one of the owners of the Clarkston Mills. ‘There are times when there are no places to park in city parking lots, and no places park in our first parking lot.?
Roth said some clients said they have been ticketed for parking more than two hours.
‘Customers come in for a business meeting, go to a restaurant for lunch, and they get ticketed,? Roth said. ‘I think downtown is fairly full with parking right now.?
Roth said he and other Mills owners have been vilified for speaking out about the public parking in their private lots.
‘People think we’re the evil people who don’t want more business using our parking lot ? that’s far from true,? he said. ‘But sometimes we’re really full. If you build two restaurants on Sashabaw Road, you would build parking lots.?
Roth suggested redesigning Depot Street and other spots could provide more parking spaces
‘The problem is, who pays for those parking spots,? he said. ‘Building a deck without government funding is not going to happen.?
A parking deck would cost about $15,000-20,000 per space.
City ordinances allow for payments in lieu of parking spaces, ‘a sum equivalent to the estimated cost of planning, acquiring, and construction of parking spaces within the village commercial limits.?
However, the city has not charged businesses for several years and there is no parking fund, said City Manager Carol Eberhardt.
New restaurants at 3 E. Church Street and 15 S. Main Street were granted exceptions to the parking ordinance under Section 20.02U.
A garage probably isn’t the solution, said Clarkston resident Cory Johnston, citing a report on Ann Arbor, losing money on parking garages.
‘Who’s going to pay to park in a parking garage,? Johnston asked. ‘I don’t think business have the money to pay for it.?
Land also may not be available, Luginski said.
‘There’s not really big spaces to build another parking lot,? the mayor said. ‘This is a problem in a lot of small towns ? it’s not isolated to us.?
The meeting at Fire station 1 is a followup to a meeting on Aug. 25.
The city commissioned a free parking study through the Traffic Information Administration, which it joined earlier this year. A study by city engineers Carlisle/Wortman would cost $8,400.