MONROE – It’s been about a decade since the city set a two-hour parking limit downtown.
Some believe it’s time for the city to set new parking times.
“We need to create an open and creative business environment. But the question is whether the two-hour parking is too strict,” said Neil Watkins, executive director of the Monroe Chamber of Commerce.
In September, the city plans to hold a public hearing on how to improve downtown parking. The last time the city looked into the issue was 1997.
Parking spots are limited downtown, where people go for a variety of different purposes, Mayor Donnetta Walser said.
Some need to park their cars for 15 minutes to shop at a convenience store. Others need more time to have lunch at a restaurant. And businesses want designated parking spots for their employees, city officials said.
“We are getting so much conflicting request from people,” Walser said.
Local businesses are conducting a survey on downtown parking, said Amanda Kleinert, who owns a business downtown.
“I would like to see a variety” of parking time limits downtown, Kleinert said.
It’s difficult to set parking regulations that make everyone happy, Kleinert said.
“Businesses come and go. But you can’t change parking times every time they come and go,” she said.
Reporter Yoshiaki Nohara: 425-339-3029 or ynohara@heraldnet.com.
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