Beginning in April, two- and three-hour parking limits will be
enforced in downtown area with police doling out $30 tickets to
violators
Gilroy – City officials anxious to lure shoppers to the downtown area during a year of major construction will begin cracking down on parking violations this spring. The move has support among business owners but is rankling employees and residents, who will have to park farther away or move their cars every few hours to avoid fines.
Starting in April, police will begin handing out $30 tickets to anyone who parks more than two hours on the blocks immediately north or south of construction along Monterey Street, as well as along both sides of Eigleberry Street between Sixth and Fourth streets. Police also will enforce three-hour parking limits in the lots off Eigleberry Street. The restrictions apply between 7am and 6pm, Monday through Saturday.
It has been more than a decade since the city enforced any of the parking limits in the downtown core. And for years, downtown business owners have complained about a lack of parking in front of their stores. Now, officials are getting serious about parking enforcement as they prepare to lose 83 spaces as part of year-long overhaul of two blocks along Monterey Street.
“The parking in the area needs to be able to turn over so clients can go in and out,” Mayor Al Pinheiro said. “The way that this is set up is to accommodate the people that want to shop. We’re going to lose room at those businesses, and the clients should be number one.”
Councilman Craig Gartman also supported the decision to enforce parking limits.
“What you have are people who pull up in front of the stores and they work there all day,” he said. “If we’re trying to bring commerce down there, we need to make sure we have spaces.”
Ro Gaeta, owner of the Bike Center at 7441 Monterey Street, welcomed the idea of reserving storefront spots along Monterey Street for customers, but questioned the wisdom of cracking down on parking in other areas.
“I don’t think those should be enforced,” he said. “The employees need to park there for six hours or more. But as far as the streets – those should be for customers only.”
Cerinity Ortiz, a 19-year-old barista at Sue’s Coffee Roasting Company at the corner of Fifth and Monterey streets, opposed any parking enforcement in the area.
“I think that’s totally unfair to employees – especially for me,” she said. “I’m 19 years old and I close (the store) at night. If I’m going to park farther away and I have to walk down a dark alley at 8 o’clock at night, they’re risking my safety. I don’t appreciate that.”
City officials have not yet finalized the parking enforcement plan and will meet with police in coming weeks to iron out the details. But Pinheiro said he does not expect any accommodation to be made for those who live in the downtown area. The greatest effect on that group may be felt on Saturdays, when residents who are at home all day will have to move their cars repeatedly or park outside the enforcement boundaries.
“We live there. Why should we have a time limit on how long we can be parked in one spot?” asked Lupe Lemus, who lives at 7516 Eigleberry Street. “It doesn’t make sense. Some times I get off work early and I usually don’t find parking as it is. It would be great if they could do some sort of permit or sticker for residents to put in the window of their car.”
In coming weeks, police will hand out flyers to business owners, stick notices on car windows and run newspaper advertisements as part of a campaign to raise awareness before enforcement begins.
Officials said parking enforcement will last until the October completion date of the Monterey Streetscape project. While police will use chalk markers to aid in the ticketing process in the near future, long-term plans could involve parking meters or meter maids, according to City Transportation Engineer Don Dey. He said the city will conduct a parking management plan for the downtown that will encompass everything from enforcement procedures to the types of restrictions.
“We could change some of the hours,” Dey explained. “Maybe we don’t need (restrictions) from 7am to 6pm. Maybe we could do 10am to 6pm. Maybe certain parts of Monterey Street should be limited to one hour to serve more customers, or we might have employees park elsewhere. We need to maximize the use of the parking spaces to the benefit of everybody.”
Parking Enforcement
Beginning in April, police will enforce the following parking limits between 7am and 6pm from Monday to Saturday:
– 2-hour limits along both sides of Eigleberry Street, from Sixth to Fourth streets
– 2-hour limits along both sides of Monterey Street between Sixth and Seventh streets, as well as the block north of the construction area, between Fourth and Third streets.
– 2-hour limits along both sides of Sixth, Fifth and Fourth streets, between Monterey and Eigleberry streets
– 3-hour limits in the parking lots off Eigleberry, between Fourth and Sixth streets
