A couple of weeks ago I warned a couple of city councilors that this was coming down the pipeline;
Free parking at night and on weekends in downtown Sioux Falls could soon expire.
Once the pay stations were put in, and the phone apps I knew the city was moving in this direction. I have been putting up with this crap in larger cities like Minneapolis for years. It’s annoying. It reminds me of paying to take a crap in bus station.
I have often said that DTSF should have FREE parking in the ramps 24/7 and only meter Phillips Ave. during the day, this would encourage business DTSF, but they seem to think they know better;
Two years ago, downtown business owners heard from a consultant who changed their way of thinking.
“If you get parking turnover 12-15 per space a day each year that could be hundreds of thousands of dollars for retailers in terms of profit,” Downtown Sioux Falls president Joe Batcheller said.
But that turnover hasn’t been happening when its free to park.
“It is a bit of an issue, particularly in evenings and weekends, someone can come and park at 5 p.m. on Friday and leave their car there until Monday morning, and if that’s right in front of a business that hurts their bottom line,” Batcheller said.
BULLSH*T!
I can count the number of cars on one hand that do that. And so what?! Who pays to maintain those parking spots – I do, through the 2nd penny CIP.
If someone comes DT at night they most likely will go to several places before leaving, spending money. How long would they stay if they had to pay for parking? If I come downtown at night I will go to 4-5 places before leaving. Last Saturday Night I went to 8 places during Jazz Crawl. How is that any different then multiple people coming DT and only shopping at one place? It’s NOT. The problem with DTSF is that they don’t have any zoning that requires diversification of businesses. If you want more people coming DT and spending money, boot all the boutiques out that close at 7 PM and put in businesses that actually entertain folks late into the night. Maybe retailers DT are suffering because they are in the wrong location?! Yah think McFLY!?
I have argued over the past decade DTSF has turned into snob-ville, and if they do this, it will continue to just be a playground for those that can ‘afford’ it. It’s really becoming quite pathetic.