COLUMBUS (WCMH) – Parking can be a pain in the Short North and the City of Columbus is trying to address the problem with a proposed pilot program.
Residents got a chance to look at the plans on Thursday at an open house inside the Goodale Park Shelterhouse.
“We’re doing this as a pilot, so that we have the flexibility to make changes,” said parking services coordinator Amanda Ford. “We’re adjusting boundaries, creating more permit parking, creating paid streets. So, it’s definitely a different change, a change from what they have today.”
The city said they’re continuing to evaluate and improve parking choices in the Short North.
“We know that the residents are suffering in the areas that don’t have permit parking,” said Ford. “They’re really struggling to find parking on their street, so we’re trying to put together a plan that will help residents be able to find parking, but still address all the needs of the district.”
Ford said they’re also looking to adjust parking meter rates.
“Ideally, the on-street should be priced probably higher than the garages to encourage long-term parkers to go to the garages, so we’ll evaluate what the appropriate rate needs to be and then we’ll have the ability to adjust that as part of the pilot,” she said.
Short North resident James LeValley said he opposes the city’s pilot program.
“My suggestion to the city is to make the developers and the business owners responsible for the problem and not the residents. This is our home. It’s going to impact our property value negatively,” he said.
He said he lives on a residential street with a lot of rental properties, making it difficult to find a parking spot by his home.
“They want us to pay a $50 fee for a chance to compete for a parking spot in front of our home with employees and business patrons in the Short North. That’s unfair.” said LeValley. “They also want us to pay a $5 fee every time we have a visitor come to our house and register their license (plate) number with the city. It’s crazy.”
Ford stressed all of parking plans are still purely a proposal and that public input is critical.
There are three more open houses next month, where you can give your suggestions:
– Tuesday, April 4, 2017 from 5:30pm – 7:30pm in the Junior Achievement Gym, 68 E. 2nd Ave.
– Tuesday, April 11, 2017 from 9:00am – 11:00am at LeMeridien Columbus, 620 N High St.
– Wednesday, April 12, 2017 from 5:30pm – 7:30pm at the King Avenue United Methodist Church, 299 King Ave.
You can also submit input by email to: parkingservices@Columbus.gov
Or by mail:
City of Columbus Parking Services
Division of Traffic Management, 2nd floor
50 West Gay Street
Columbus, OH 43215All suggestions/forms must be received by April 28, 2017. Ford said the new parking program will take months to develop and implement, but their goal is to have everything ready to go by January 2018.
