Los Gatos Weekly-Times Parking solutions must be a high priority this year This is the year downtown merchants, the long-suffering Parking Commission and everyone who loves to shop downtown have been waiting for: This is the year the town is supposed to take aggressive steps to solve its parking problem. Already, though, there's grumbling among some merchants that they did not have a chance to preview the downtown parking structure feasibility study that was on the agenda for the Jan. 4 Town Council meeting. That doesn't mean business people won't get an opportunity to have their say, but it does mean that, once again, the process will be behind schedule. Coming out of the hectic holiday season, merchants could have used a psychological boost, some sense that solutions are already under way. Both the Town Council and the merchants, through the Town of Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce, made a valiant effort to minimize the trauma of downtown parking for shoppers this Christmas season. But results were mixed. Some merchants said town-sponsored valet parking attracted a good following on weekends and at night when restaurants were busy. But inadequate signage kept many would-be users--especially those from out of town--in the dark about the availability of the free service. Some disheartened merchants reported being told by shoppers who'd driven in circles trying to find a parking spot that they'd never subject themselves to the experience again. The Parking Partners program was proposed by the Town Chamber as a way for downtown businesses to help themselves by offering incentives to employees to park away from the most central locations. It was not as successful as it might have been, partly because too many of those obliged to do the enforcing were too busy taking care of customers. And many employees complained about parking in the Miles Avenue lot or the Park 'n' Ride across Highway 9. Too dark, too dangerous, too far away, they said. One shop owner told the Los Gatos Weekly-Times: "No one actually came out and said it, but the gist was: 'It's the walk, stupid.' " With the parking structure feasibility study now complete, it's time to put parking solutions on the fast track. Costs for a new structure will be enormous, possibly more than an optimistic Town Council anticipated in the euphoria of last year's decision that the time had come. The town also needs to continue exploring other avenues to improve parking, be it paid parking or improved lighting that might make more distant parking lots attractive to downtown employees. The one thing that's not acceptable is for another year to go by without a dramatic move toward solutions. [ Back to Contents Page | Los Gatos Weekly-Times Home Page | Archives ] This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, January 6, 1999. ©1998 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.