City reveals parking study recommendations for downtown

ASHEBORO — Two workshops on June 26 revealed recommendations to improve parking in the central business district of Asheboro.

Walker Consultants, which did the study, was represented by Jim Corbett, who did a Power Point presentation at the city’s Recreation Center on North Street. He said the study is based on growth projections for the next five years and the recommendations propose “how to make it work without building something,” such as a parking deck.

The proposals will be presented to the Asheboro City Council at its July 10 meeting but a decision will likely come after the council members have had time to study the recommendations and receive further community input.

The area of the study consists of 15-plus blocks bordered by Salisbury Street to the north, Academy Street to the south, Cox Street to the east and Davis Street to the west.

Corbett said the study involved taking inventory of public and private parking, existing parking regulations and penalties, signage, shuttle services, technology enhancements, and enforcement and safety.

The inventory found a total of 835 parking spaces downtown, including 180 short-term on-street, 438 long-term off-street and 217 off-street non-business hours.

Current city regulations for parking include no parking, two- and three-hour parking and no restrictions. Corbett said, “We like curbside parking for short-term access to businesses. We propose keeping short-term on Sunset (Avenue).”

Long-term parking currently exists at Bicentennial Park and on North Street. There are also private lots owned by First Baptist Church at the corner of Church and Hoover streets, Pinnacle Bank at the corner of North and Salisbury streets and the Economic Development Corporation at the corner of Salisbury and Fayetteville streets.

Corbett said they also looked at a gravel lot next to the Masonic building on Sunset Avenue. Those private lots could be used by the public after business or church hours.

The plan allows for loading zones on South Church Street, Sunset Avenue, North Street, Trade Street and South Fayetteville Street. A time limit of 15 or 30 minutes could be imposed for those areas.

Corbett said the study recommends raising the parking fine from $5 to $15-to-$25. That would limit repeat offenders, he said, adding that “most people want to comply.”

The parking study recommends separate signage for pedestrians and vehicular traffic and to limit signs to three lines of information. A sign with a large “P” would let drivers know they have come to the parking area.

In order to encourage the use of outlying parking lots such as on South Church Street, the study encourages a shuttle or trolley service that would do a loop around the city center. A shuttle circuit should not take more than 10 minutes, Corbett said. It would be an option for equal distribution of parking in the downtown area.

Technology enhancements could include license plate readers to identify vehicles and their times of parking. Another option would be a visual display letting drivers know of spaces available within a particular lot.

For enforcement, the plan would deploy non-sworn officers to add a physical presence in  pedestrian and vehicular corridors. Suggested are one full-time and two part-time officers.

Safety concerns at crosswalks at Church and Hoover streets and also at South Church at the Farmers Market are considered in the report. Corbett said the city could provide high-intensity active crosswalks or pedestrian hybrid beacons.

The study lists priorities for the action plan:

1.         The first priority would be to modify the city’s parking ordinance.

2.         Next would be designating and implementing short-term and long-term time limits.

Then, in order, are to:

3.         Increase citation amounts.

4.         Enforcement.

5.         License plate recognition and parking guidance technology.

6.         Signage and wayfinding.

7.         Pedestrian crossing.

8.         Circulator service (shuttle).

9.         Adding to the future parking inventory.