BUSINESS OWNERS IN NEW BUFFALO REVOLT ON PAID PARKING PLAN

By:   Stan Maddux

            NEW BUFFALO – Decision makers in New Buffalo could be backpedaling on plans to charge for parking in the lakefront community’s downtown.

Business owners afraid of losing a lot of customers, especially during the busy summer tourist season, came out in droves to a town hall type meeting Thursday evening at City Hall.

The meeting was called in response to their concerns since the city council’s decision in May to install pay stations along Whittaker St. and other connecting thoroughfares.

The plans had not been finalized yet but the intent was to likely charge $2 an hour to park beginning in August, said Mayor Vance Price.

Business owners fearing as much as a 30 percent or more loss in sales urged the plan be scrapped or paused for a year to try and come up with something more pleasing to both sides.

There were also threats of lawsuits by some business owners if the city goes ahead and imposes paid parking.

“I’m going to hire a lawyer if this goes down,” said Kathy Kochs, owner of Sweetwater Boating Supplies at 38 N. Whittaker St.

Kochs said she has worked too hard for a long time to lose the gradual increase in customers who’ve been coming into her store every year from charging a fee to park.

She also said paid parking sends an unwelcoming message in a community where many businesses rely on the sharp uptick in summer visitors for year round survival.

“We’re not supposed to cover charge to come into our town,” she said.

John Lustina, owner of the popular Beer Church, said he invested four million dollars to turn an over 160 year old former church at 24 S. Whittaker St. into a major local destination before issuing an ultimatum.

“If you put these meters in front of my business, we will be seeking reimbursement for all of the money we’ve spent in the last seven years,” said

Initially, Mayor Vance Price expressed doubt that people would stop coming to the city if they had to pay to park.

However, several local business owners, who reside in St. Joseph, claimed there’s been a noticeable loss of customers in that lakefront community’s downtown after pay to park there went into effect on May 1.

Just a few weeks later, pay to park hours in St. Joseph were changed from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. to 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in response to complaints from the business community.

Pay to park there was also shortened from May 1 to September 30 to Memorial Day weekend until Labor Day.

The decision to charge for parking comes at a time when the city is looking for additional revenue sources to offset the wear and tear on infrastructure like streets and other expenses from tourists coming into the city without asking property owners to shoulder the burden.

Business owners in New Buffalo strongly asked the city to start enforcing the current three hour downtown parking limit and levy stiff fines to generate added revenue instead.

City Councilman Rich Knoll fired back, pointing out that many of their workers park in those spots and don’t leave until after their shifts.

“Who are the tickets going to go to?  You’re employees,” he said.

Another money-raising idea expressed from the business community was increase the fees for parking at the beach.

Maria Crawford, owner of Brewster’s restaurant at 11 W. Merchant St., said someone having to pay $2 to park to grab a $5 sandwich or cup of coffee might choose to simply drive away.

“That is unreasonable.  There are other options the city can explore,” she said.

Diane Pysho, a member of the New Buffalo Downtown Development Authority, announced she’s against charging a parking fee.

“For the first time in years, we have fully occupied storefronts.  New Buffalo’s main street success is no coincidence and can be easily destroyed by ill-timed interference,” she said.

No vote was taken because it was not an official meeting of the city council, which has to be in formal session when deciding matters.

Toward the end, Price and Knoll seemed receptive to the business community’s request to work together in exploring other options before moving forward on the pay parking plan.

            Knoll went as far as promising to revisit the issue with his colleagues on the governing body.

“We’ll talk this over,” Knoll said.