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Commissioner O'Connor inquired if the City will be using its funds to build that parking <br />space at some point. <br />Mr. Weinstein said yes. <br />Chair Allen stated that she ran into someone from the PDA and understood that it <br />actually has a task force to prioritize strategies for Downtown parking, and there <br />seemed to be more traction around that. He asked Mr. Weinstein if he is aware of what <br />is going on there. <br />Mr. Weinstein replied that parking has primarily been the issue in the Downtown, and it <br />is something people, including the PDA and City staff, are constantly talking about. He <br />stated that staff is continuing to evaluate new opportunities as they come up to acquire <br />parking beyond the parcels that Mr. Otto mentioned. He noted that staff has reviewed a <br />lot of them, but they are often very expensive and the City has ultimately rejected <br />purchasing them for that reason. He stated that staff will ultimately be working on <br />addressing parking on the demand side as well. He noted that it is not just about <br />increasing the parking supply but also about getting people Downtown in other ways, <br />parking at other places, and giving them information to know where that parking is <br />because there actually is parking in Downtown that a lot of people do not know about. <br />He pointed out that it is not just a matter of buying more parcels and developing those <br />with parking; it is also about making existing parking and its location a little more <br />transparent to people visiting the Downtown. <br />Commissioner O'Connor asked staff to confirm his understanding from Mr. Weinstein's <br />comments that not only the City but also the PDA recognize that the Downtown has <br />parking issues and that more parking is needed Downtown. <br />Mr. Weinstein confirmed that was correct. <br />Commissioner Balch recalled that when the Commission approved the building that is <br />being built on the corner of St. Mary's Street, the conversation at the time was that there <br />was enough parking; it just was not where people wanted it per se, that it was more of a <br />walk around from the survey the City had done. He asked staff if that is still correct. <br />Mr. Weinstein replied that was correct. He stated that there was a parking study that <br />was done a couple of years ago that did show there was sufficient parking in Downtown. <br />He noted that the Downtown is not incredibly large, so it is walkable from one end to the <br />other: north to south and east to west. He agreed that at certain peak times of the day, <br />there is no parking exactly where people want it. He noted that it is a balancing act: the <br />Downtown is not necessarily a place where people can park right next to the business <br />they are going to, but one where people may park a couple of blocks away and then <br />walk to their destination. <br />Commissioner Balch inquired how often that survey is done. <br />PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, May 13, 2015 Page 9 of 32 <br />