Havre de Grace council deadlocks on Pennington Avenue one-way proposal after heated public comment

Havre de Grace — The Havre de Grace City Council voted 3-3 on Aug. 18, failing to advance an ordinance (12 o 2) that would have changed Pennington Avenue to a one-way street and reconfigured parking.

Supporters of keeping Pennington two-way — including multiple downtown business owners — told the council during public comment that the change would confuse visitors, reduce access to storefronts and complicate deliveries. ‘‘Visitors get turned around, frustrated, give up before they find where they want to go,’’ John Klasavage, owner of Washington Street Books, told the council. ‘‘If you make that one way, they have nowhere to go.’’

The proposal had been placed back on the agenda so the council could debate it before the city’s striping contractor repainted downtown after recent repaving work. Proponents said the one-way conversion could increase the number of parking spaces by allowing narrower, 9-foot stalls and create a safer traffic pattern at a nearby intersection; opponents said the map-based gains were overstated and would harm the downtown economy.

Several merchants described detailed counts and local knowledge challenging the administration’s estimates. ‘‘I walked this last meeting. There were 54 parking spaces available on Pennington at the time,’’ Klasavage said, disputing a map that showed a projected increase from 46 to 71 spaces. George Wagner, of Baughaska Antique Mall, said he counted 678 parking spots in the broader downtown area and that the net gain from converting Pennington would be small.

Council debate reflected the split. Council member Shanegas (recorded as Snagis in the roll call) voted yes to move the ordinance forward so advisory boards and the public could study it; Council member Jones also voted yes. Council president (identified in the roll call as Ringsacker) voted yes. Council members Booker, Ellis and Boyer voted no. The tie left the ordinance without the first-reading approval needed to proceed to public input and final readings.

Mayor Martin and administration staff said the reintroduction was intended to let the City stripe Congress and Pennington together if a one-way pattern was desired, to avoid re-striping costs. Opponents urged the council to send the idea instead to the Street and Traffic Safety advisory board and to gather formal counts and fire/EMS access confirmations before making a change.

The council did not adopt the ordinance. Council members who supported further study said they would seek review by the Street and Traffic Safety advisory board and requested input from the fire chief and police on emergency access and parking for first responders.

The failure of the measure preserves the current two-way traffic and angled parking layout on Pennington for now. Any future change would require the council to reintroduce the ordinance and schedule the required public hearings.