Town council moved one step closer to deciding what to do about downtown parking woes after receiving a report from the Planning and Development executive committee at Monday night’s regular meeting.
The report—composed in response to the Business Improvement Area’s recommendation that council not reinstate meters in the downtown area to enforce parking—consists of seven possible changes in parking enforcement.
These include:
•campaigning downtown workers with a request for voluntary compliance to park elsewhere;
•trying to enlist assistance and support from employers to pressure employees to park elsewhere;
•offer incentives to employees who participate in parking elsewhere (such as free or low-cost reserved parking areas);
•requesting and enlisting input and support for controlled parking from the BIA and Fort Frances Chamber of Commerce;
•reducing the time allowed for parking on Scott Street between Central Avenue and Armit Avenue to one hour on a six-month trial basis;
•dramatically increasing present fines for parking infractions (such as the present $10 fines being increased to $20, and the $40 fine for illegally parking in a handicap zone to $300); and
•increasing the level of enforcement time spent on Scott Street by enforcement staff (including changing current bylaw enforcement staff shift schedules to allow for more time on Scott Street on Saturdays and hiring an additional enforcement staff on a part-time interim basis).
Administration and Finance manager Darryl Allan noted the change in fines for parking in a handicapped zone was part of changes under the new Ontarians with Disability Act, which comes into effect Sept. 30.
“I think one of the best suggestions is the change from two-hour parking to one hour,” said Mayor Glenn Witherspoon.
“As long as it comes along with enforcement,” added Coun. Deane Cunningham.
Coun. Roy Avis’ only objection was to the suggestion of hiring a new employee to monitor parking.
“Is it going to be a student? A part-time employee? A full-time employee?” he asked, adding that if accepting the report automatically meant hiring a new town employee, he couldn’t agree with it.
He subsequently was assured by several councillors that approving the report did not necessarily mean this to be true.
Coun. Struchan Gilson noted while he was willing to accept the report, he still thought “the whole thing would be solved if we just installed parking meters.”
Last night’s approval of the report by council will see further investigation of the suggestions in it.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
