Parking problems plague Perry

During the time of public input near the end of Perry’s meeting of mayor and council Tuesday, resident Robert Russell approached the podium for a discussion regarding parking in the city.

“I’ve been a resident of Perry for 20 years,” he said. “I’ve watched it expand and grow.

“I’m getting a little concerned about the parking situation. You put in the Muse [Theatre]; they took out their parking. I see Orleans [on Carroll] is taking out their parking. So it’s going to force people to park on private property because they’ve already started doing it.”

Russell said he’s concerned about the parking at Morning By Morning Coffee Company near his home since that lot can become crowded, forcing people to park at other places such as the Board of Education next door. The 36 recently added parking spaces along Main Street aren’t being used, he said.

“So as we expand, we have to think on it,” Russell said. “I’m seeing that we’re taking out the public parking areas and filling them with buildings — which is going to force us owners of our property to accommodate these people somehow.”

Perry Assistant City Manager Robert Smith said the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) has been discussing how to best utilize the limited downtown space.

“The DDA — when they proposed to put some sort of infill development project at the Ball Street-Main Street parking lot — were working under the assumption that that’s not the best use of that property, and that it’s their mission to shift properties to the best and highest use to promote downtown development and that type of thing,” Smith said.

Downtown Perry is “landlocked,” but city officials are doing what they can while working with existing property, he added.

“It has always been the vision of our downtown to have parking on the periphery, and then people walk into the center of town,” Smith said.

Russell responded, saying people parking in town aren’t going to walk more than they have to.

Smith said that may just take some adjustment for residents. Pending environmental remediation that’s planned to take place, Smith added city officials hope to expand the parking lot behind the Events Center to include some of the former Stanley property nearby. There was no specific time frame given for the completion of this project, but Smith said it could be completed “relatively soon.”

Russell went on to ask about parking near the railroad in downtown, and Smith said city officials are working to acquire properties to maintain more peripheral parking.

“As downtown becomes more of a desirable place for people to spend their time, parking — I think — will continue to be a bit of an issue, but it’s certainly something that’s high-priority on our radar at the city,” Smith said. “And I assure you, we are working to address these issues.”

Lee Gilmour, Perry city manager, said private properties downtown typically don’t allow long-term parking, but the parking situation is seeing a transitional period.

“I think what you’re starting to see is a transition of people from where they thought they historically would park to taking a look at some of the other alternatives,” he said. “As it stands right now, we do not allow people long-term to come in and park on the site where the administration building is going to be constructed.”

If the city saw an ongoing parking problem, some lots could be used as interim parking depending on a vote from Council, he added.

Gilmour said he believed officials with the Board of Education near Morning by Morning Coffee Company asked for parking restrictions when the building is active, especially during the work week. The city also has lots nearby like at First Baptist Church and Main Street offers spaces as mentioned above.

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