Dear Editor,
I am truly dismayed at the process of how the enforced parking
restrictions came about. I am a new business owner in Gilroy and
have attended many of the planning meetings for the streetscape
project since last February, but the subject of starting enforced
parking in April was not made clear (and final) until this week.
The merchants were not contacted about this decision!
Dear Editor,
I am truly dismayed at the process of how the enforced parking restrictions came about. I am a new business owner in Gilroy and have attended many of the planning meetings for the streetscape project since last February, but the subject of starting enforced parking in April was not made clear (and final) until this week. The merchants were not contacted about this decision!
In fact, I went to the City Council meeting on Feb. 6 and Mayor Al Pinheiro pulled the item from the agenda because it needed more planning and details. The next morning the decision was made!
This is death to Gilroy downtown during this period of construction. Already the customers need to maneuver around an obstacle course and now they are going to have to worry about getting tickets. I don’t believe it is fair to say that two hours is sufficient for downtown business.
Try to bowl three lanes, have lunch and get to and from your car in two hours. It just doesn’t work. Antique shopping is a time-consuming business. Customers can easily spend four to five hours in those shops if they are really looking around and, they might want a drink or a snack afterwards. Having coffee in a coffeehouse and using the Internet can take a good part of the day.
And, being an employer in a business, I am concerned about my employees having to walk through dim lighted residential neighborhoods in the early dark hours (5am) and the late evenings after dark. Also, this may upset the residents of those areas because there are cars parked all day. There are no provisions for long-term parking areas during this period.
Sue Shalit, Sue’s Coffee Roasting Company, Gilroy
