NORMAN — Veteran merchants in downtown Norman fear that a cure proposed by city officials to alleviate parking woes could turn out to be worse than the illness.
The malady is the fact that there are not enough parking spaces available to those who come downtown to shop, retailers say. Instead, shoppers will head to stores in malls outside of downtown where they can easily find parking places.
Several years ago, the city established a relief parking lot along Gray Street, a block north of Main Street, intended to provide more parking for shoppers.
But the slots are being taken over by downtown employees who leave their vehicles parked all day long in the Gray Street lot, said Scott Blair who has operated a Main Street furniture store for the past 37 years.
City public works officials suggested last week that these all-day parkers could be charged a fee to use the Gray Street lot.
However, merchants point out that downtown employees would opt to park in the free spaces now available on Main Street, instead of paying for a slot in the Gray Street lot.
City Councilwoman Carol Dillingham said she would hate to see those premium Main Street parking spaces gobbled up by employees working downtown.
Dillingham said she understood why “there is a great deal of concern” from retailers, such as furniture and jewelry shop owners reliant upon shoppers who come downtown.
Newt Mitchell, who has operated a jewelry store downtown for the past 29 years, said the city proposal was ill conceived.
“I see major, major problems” resulting for downtown businesses that could end up with even less parking space for shoppers, he said.
Both Mitchell and Blair stressed to city officials that their parking problems have dwindled greatly since the city added free parking in the Gray Street lot.
City councilman Doug Cubberley, who chaired the Finance Committee meeting Wednesday, said it was obvious that more study is needed to address Norman’s downtown parking problems.
