One issue intertwined with recent conference center proposals was the issue of parking in downtown Jefferson City. But now that the conference center concept has been shelved, at least for now, where does that leave downtown parking?
For some council members, the issue itself still needs to be studied to determine whether there truly is a lack of parking in the city's downtown core.
At a City Council meeting early this month, council members voted 9-1 to reject conference center proposals from the Jefferson City-based Farmer Holding Co. and the Hannibal-based Ehrhardt Hospitality Group after nearly two years of work on the process. After the vote, most council members said it was time to put the concept on the shelf and get public input on how the lodging tax funds should be used.
The proposal from the Ehrhardt Hospitality Group had included a new city-built and operated garage at the site on West McCarty Street that would have provided 250 spaces. Now that both proposals have been rejected by the council, many council members say the issue needs careful study before they can decide how to proceed.
At the time of the Ehrhardt proposal, city staff said the West McCarty site was not ideal for a new garage because many people don't want to walk up the hill from McCarty to East High Street. Staff has said the ideal location for a new garage would have about 400 or 500 spaces with vehicles able to enter and exit from West McCarty Street, but also have pedestrian access to High Street, without disrupting the existing historic buildings.
The city has 1,574 spaces in reserved parking areas downtown, including the existing city garage on Madison Street and Capitol Avenue, as well as 883 metered spots, including all free parking areas, in the downtown area.
Third Ward Councilman Bob Scrivner said downtown parking is a long-term priority, but not a high one in the short term. He said the city will look at the issue and determine where to go from here, but likely not immediately.
"Parking is not going to get better downtown, it's going to get worse," Scrivner said. "Parking is probably not something that is a high priority today."
Third Ward Councilman Ken Hussey said the city needs to take a "hard look" to determine what is needed, as well as partner with downtown businesses and the state to make those determinations.
"It seems like maybe this a good chance to have the downtown parking conversation independent of any conference center discussion," Hussey said.
Fourth Ward Councilman Carlos Graham said some kind of study is needed to see if additional parking is needed. He said he doesn't know how full the city's current garage, on Madison Street and Capitol Avenue, is to begin with, and would need more information before moving forward on any parking proposal.
Public Works Director Matt Morasch and Operations Division Director Britt Smith said the city has a parking study from the late 1990s that was updated in 2004 or 2005. The study identifies areas that have parking deficiencies and those that have a surplus of parking. The areas marked as deficient tended to be closer to the Capitol and East High Street, while those with a surplus were on West McCarty Street.
"That study determined we had up to a 1,200-car deficit, I think, if everything was fully developed (in the downtown)," Morasch said.
Morasch said based on waiting lists for existing lots, including the Madison Street garage, staff believes a 400- or 500-space garage could easily be filled in the downtown area.
"We could probably easily fill that up," Morasch said. "We feel pretty comfortable ... that would help downtown."
Second Ward Councilman J. Rick Mihalevich said he never was convinced by the argument that people would not walk up the hill from West McCarty Street to East High Street. Mihalevich said downtown parking is needed, but it needs to be in a location where the city wants and expects growth to occur, which may require a master plan.
"I think that we really are struggling a little bit with a master plan of how we want the downtown to look," Mihalevich said. "Some sort of plan would be helpful to understand where we expect that growth to occur."
First Ward Councilman Rick Prather said there is an issue with downtown parking, but he's not sure what the solution would be. If the solution is another garage, he said, then the question becomes where.
"It needs to be studied on where it would best fit the needs for downtown," Prather said. "I believe we do have an issue of parking downtown."
When asked about this subject, City Administrator Steve Crowell said "probably a question for the mayor." Crowell noted staff has had some general discussion on a new parking garage, but nothing concrete and no direction has been received by the City Council.
"My sense is that the City Council wants to get through the budget process, or at least part of the budget process, discuss any future use of the lodging tax money and/or planning for construction of a new parking garage," Crowell said in an email.
Mayor Eric Struemph said the need for downtown parking already has been identified, though the council has yet to officially weigh in on the issue. Struemph said the city needs additional parking downtown near the city's main draw, the Capitol complex, along with a pass-through to make a new garage accessible from High Street.
During conference center discussions, the Farmer Holding Co. purchased a building in the 100 block of East High Street and included it in their proposal to be donated to the city for a pass-through for a future garage. After the council rejected both proposals, Rob Kingsbury, with Farmer Holding Co., said the company would need to re-evaluate the situation and decide what they want to do with the building.
Morasch said he believes most people likely would support an additional garage, but the hardest part is finding the location.
"Getting that property at the right price that we can afford and finding a seller willing to sell ... in the right location that supports all of these things, that's the biggest nut to crack," Morasch said.
"That's what has always probably stalled things out in the past."
Have your say
What do you think about parking downtown? Is there a shortage of spaces? Do you have an idea of how you would solve any parking issues in the area? Send your comments and ideas to News Tribune reporter Madeleine Leroux at madeleine@newstribune. com.