Council members and city staff discussed several options on July 14 to address parking stress on Vester Avenue and in the downtown core while construction proceeds, and gave staff a short list of priorities to pursue.

Staff outlined multiple approaches: creating additional on-street spaces by modifying curb and sidewalk sections (staff estimated roughly $60,000), piloting non-delineated parking, improving wayfinding signage, allowing reserved on-street spaces for businesses (with fees), implementing valet services (staff estimated a potential program cost of roughly $90,000 to $150,000 per year including lost meter revenue) and relocating long-term employee parking to City Hall to free up closer spaces for customers.

Council direction: Members prioritized low-cost, fast actions first. They asked staff to (1) improve signage and messaging directing visitors to underused City Hall and other lots; (2) study the feasibility and traffic impacts of making a segment of Vester one-way (including whether a temporary construction-era one-way could be used); and (3) further investigate valet or staged-parking options, including identifying nearby lots that could be used to park vehicles. Council asked staff to return with cost and feasibility information and suggested staff pursue potential cost-sharing with the DDA or private property owners.

Why it matters: Construction in the East-side downtown area is reducing curb availability and increasing parking demand for businesses. Council members emphasized balancing customer access and pedestrian-friendly sidewalks while avoiding long-term narrowing of sidewalks.

Next steps: Staff will begin with signage/wayfinding improvements and return with a traffic study to evaluate one-way options and a financial feasibility analysis for valet staging and possible lot-use agreements with nearby property owners.

Ending: Councilmembers asked staff to engage downtown business owners, the DDA and affected residents as staff develops firm proposals.