CCMIN062392 - Laserfiche WebLink

114 Mr. Tarver asked what would preclude the trees from going in the 8 foot parking lane if there were 45 feet of street right-of ..... way. Mr. Higdon replied that he didn't think that 8 feet would be enough room to put a proper tree well in. Comments were then solicited from the audience. A1 Bronzini of 719 Main Street showed some snapshots taken in the town of Mountain View where a similar project of street trees and parallel parking had been done. He found that in trying to park parallel it was next to impossible, due to the trees being too close together. He had pictures of other vehicles that were parked rather haphazardly due to the trees. The photos also demonstrated how the trees were damaged from cars hitting them. His other concern was if the trees were put in the street it would remove the use of the curb lane. He felt that putting trees in the street would also waste valuable parking space. Mr. Bronzini gave Council letters from Chris Beratlis and Jo Betty Allen expressing their concerns about parallel parking. Mr. Bronzini asked that Council not approve parallel parking. Peter MacDonald, 450 Main Street, President of the Chamber of Commerce, stated that the Chamber of Commerce preferred Option 3. He believed the trees in the parking lane would create the perception of a parking problem downtown. He used the example of the difficulty of parking in front of E1 Portal and Moonlighting and the businesses there, as well as the reduction of the number of parking spaces. The Chamber of Commerce did not support the bulb- out curb design at the street intersections and at the crosswalks. He preferred to create the pedestrian friendly environment. Mr. MacDonald felt that it was very important that as much get done in the first phase as possible. He believed that there needed to be places for people to sit down. He hoped that the construction schedule would keep the two way traffic possible and keep the access to the fronts of buildings. He continued by stating the that the Chamber was concerned about the sidewalk banding creating the perception of narrower sidewalks and the problem of the varying width of sidewalks up and down Main Street. Bruce Takens, President of the Downtown Association, urged that focus be kept on the Main Street infrastructure - the drains, the sewer, and water. He believed that wide sidewalks would allow outdoor dining and seating for the public and would add a great aspect to downtown. He added the look that all are accustomed to seeing must be kept, as well as the atmosphere the beauty and the friendliness. The businesses must not be inconvenienced by making it impossible for them to receive deliveries due to the trees in the street or changing the direction of the street which may affect them directly. Mr. Takens asked where the street lights would be 6/23/92 14