Conference 7.286::maynard

What parking problem?  Does the town have a parking problem?

I have never failed to find plenty space to park while shopping, either
behind the stores on one side of Nason St, or behind the stores on the
other.  All of these spaces are closer to every store in Maynard than
where I have to park when I visit Phesant Lane Mall is to the stores
there.  I do think that the parking platform across from the Fine Arts
was a good idea, and served its purpose nicely.  Maynard is in great
shape parking wise.

I do dislike parking meters, but I very rarely actually put money in
them.  I either find one with time on it, or ignore them because it's
usually after metered hours.

Digital, on the other hand, has a parking problem.  I have a 17 pound
"portable" computer that just about takes the fingers off my hand by
the time I get from 3-3 to the far end of the Thompson Street lot,
where the only empty spaces are at 9:30 in the morning.  While there are
enough total spaces, they're layed out so that it guarntees a long healthy
walk to just about everyone that works here.  Can we get a reduced rate
on our medical insurance for Mill employees?

I have seen many cases of employees parking at metered spaces and
feeding coins all day, just to avoid the long walk to our side of the
mill.  These people can't be stopped by meters or parking fines. 
Perhaps the space where buildings 13-19 used to be (now a blue-pass
area) could be used as a multi-level garage.  Make sure there is easy
access to building 1 and 3.  Sell permission to park there for a fee.  
I wonder how long it would take for the building to pay for itself?

    I definitely agree with you, Jeff.  I'll often times buzz downtown on
    a Saturday to pick something up and have never had a problem finding a
    parking spot.  Maybe not directly in front of the store I'm going to
    shop at, but walking from one end of the downtown area to the other 
    isn't exactly like walking the Appalachian Trail, as some people make 
    it sound.
    
    In my opinion, the steady flow of traffic around town, implemented with
    the new traffic pattern, far outweighs the loss of a few on street 
    parking spaces.
    
    					Steve

Art

I agree with you that there is a parking problem in downtown Maynard.

There seems to be enough parking to handle the existing stores, but 
we have many vacant storefronts and buildings.  If we want to attract
a big-name store, such as a Lechmere Sales as was discussed in the note
about filling the vacant mall, we need to provide enough  free parking 
to handle their steady stream of customers.  Why would they choose a
place that provides a tremendous inconvenience to their customers?
Why would any merchant or business choose a place with inadequate parking?
In a town of approximately 10,000, the amount of walk-by business is probably 
not great enough to counteract lack of parking.

Given the density of the downtown area, it seems to me that the obvious
solution is to build another multi-level garage.  The most likely site 
would be behind the mall.  The major problem I see is that it might
have to be too large (i.e. high) to satisfy the parking needs of a
large store, or a collection of smaller stores.  If it were more than
a few stories high, it would be out of scale with the rest of the town
and may be a blight on the landscape.

The only other thing I can think of is for the town to buy land downtown, 
clear it of buildings and build a parking garage.  This has obvious social
implications of displacing people and could have a huge price tag.  I would
not dare to suggest candidates for this scheme -- it's too sensitive.

I think the town fathers and mothers (town parents?) face a big problem
in attracting business to Maynard in such hard economic times.  I wish
them luck in solving the problem.

Margaret

Hmm.  I see what you mean about a good anchor store requiring parking
expansion.  Perhaps we'll get a better feel for things when there are
stores in the Mall again.

    
    
    I was downtown at lunch today and noticed the officer making his
    usual rounds looking for expired meters. 
    
    I noticed that after he wrote a ticket, he did something to the meter.
    You could hear the normal sound when you get when you feed the meter.
    Saw him do this twice...any idea what he's doing?
    

    
    He is checking the meter to be sure that it is in working order; just
    to cover the aspect that it may have been a coin stuck or the meter not
    working at all. Of course he could do this first, but the meters are
    not the problem 99% of the time.
    
    

    Doesn't he actually add time to the meter, so when he comes back
    through after a second expiration, a second violation is awarded?
    
    

    
    I do believe that is true also..