Historic district workers get a parking break

 

BY PRU SOWERS

Konk Life Staff Writer

 

While many consider Key West a paradise, one particularly challenging aspect of living and working here is parking or, rather, the lack of it.

 

Non-resident employees working in the historic district and along Duval Street have complained for years about the difficulty of parking their cars when they drive to work, John Wilkins, the city’s parking manager, told city commissioners at their June 17 meeting. Although there is currently a program allowing historic district employees to park at city meters for $400 for four months, that cost is too high for many to afford, he said.

 

“What we have found is that many employees cannot take advantage of that, employees that make $10, $12 an hour. One hundred dollars a month is quite a bite out of their paycheck,” Wilkins said.

 

As a result, Wilkins proposed a new program that will allow any employee of a business located in the historic district to park in the Old Town Garage on Grinnell Street for $25 a month. A survey found that garage, which is a designated park and ride parking lot near the Key West Bight, has excess capacity that could accommodate the new parking plan.

 

“This serves a second purpose, also, to alleviate some of the pressure on the neighborhoods around that area where currently employees park in the residential parking spaces. By providing a low cost alternative, we’re hoping they will take advantage of that and they won’t drive around looking when they know they have a low cost alternative at the park and ride,” Wilkins said.

 

City commissioners voted 5-1 to approve the plan, with Commissioner Billy Wardlow the lone dissenter. Wardlow said he was concerned that employees working at business on Upper Duval would be too far away from the Grinnell Street garage, requiring a long walk.

 

“I just don’t think it’s fair to employees working on that end of the road,” he said.

 

Commissioner Clayton Lopez, who represents the Bahama Village area, shared Wardlow’s concerns but said, “We have to do something, no question.”

 

Wilkins said his parking staff would continue to look for excess capacity in other garages closer to the Upper Duval, Bahama Village area.

 

“If those came on line and had excess capacity, the city manager could designate those as part of the program as well,” Wilkins said.

 

Commissioner Tony Yaniz proposed that the city continue its efforts to develop a viable commuter shuttle system to help move people easily from one end of town to another. And Commissioner Teri Johnston agreed with Wilkins that the city had to be careful about making it too easy for people to drive cars into congested areas of Key West.

“Our focus needs to be getting rid of cars. That’s the ultimate solution here: Don’t bring them to Key West,” she said.

Wilkins also won City Commission approval for a second parking plan, this one to create a new $10 decal that would give selective access to the coveted city residential parking spots. Currently, anyone with a Florida license plate that says “Monroe County” on it can park in residential spots. However, the state is redesigning its license plate and will remove any county designation.

As a result, Wilkins said, beginning Oct. 1, the city tax collector will issue the $10 annual decal to residents, non-resident property owners, seasonal residents of four months or more and military personnel stationed in Key West. Wardlow asked that non-resident business owners also be able to quality for the decal to let them more easily drive into town to visit their establishments. Wilkins agreed to make that change. The new ordinance will come back before the City Commission for a second reading at its next meeting.

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