Downtown parking was the major debate at the Newmarket Downtown BIA annual general meeting as business owners raised concerns about the wait for solutions.
The BIA board met at the town office Nov. 29 to review its year and confirm its approximately $30,000 budget. While the meeting highlighted various events in the BIA, ongoing concerns for limited parking space occupied much of the evening’s open discussion.
Board member Allan Cockburn said it remains a huge issue.
“We keep getting setbacks on parking when we need to move forward,” Cockburn said.
More pressure is expected on downtown parking when the Postmark Hotel opens, now expected to be in 2024. The town’s planned solution is to turn the current downtown tennis courts into a parking lot expansion. But the start on that construction awaits the completion of a new facility for the Newmarket Tennis Club, pushed back into the spring due to soil conditions on the build site.
Cockburn suggested the town consider starting work on the parking lot construction sooner, even if it might leave the tennis club temporarily homeless.
“Are we delaying a parking program for a very small group of people?” Cockburn said, adding there are other facilities tennis players could temporarily use. “The key word in this town is parking — 10 years, we haven’t moved an inch.”
Councillor Bob Kwapis, the town representative on the BIA, pushed back and said that is unfair, as the town has added some downtown parking in that time. During the meeting, he also noted that the BIA is exploring parking options along Church Street to help alleviate the issue.
Kwapis said a solution is on the horizon, floating a timeline of two years.
“The town is going forward to resolve the issue. Let’s be patient, everyone,” Kwapis said.
The Postmark Hotel, in addition to its own parking spots, does plan to use a valet service using some town parking spots. However, Kwapis said they are talking about measures like shuttling in employees from farther out.
But audience members raised how persistent the parking issues has remained over many years.
Carmina Pereria, who owns buildings downtown, said that people often struggle to find places to park when eating downtown.
“We have such a big problem with parking,” she said, adding that with the Postmark Hotel coming in, “The town should have known and said, ‘We have to move more quickly.’”
Elisabeth Hempen expressed appreciation for the efforts of the BIA and town, but she suggested a person more solely dedicated to address downtown issues.
“We need to take this very, very seriously,” she said.
Pedestrians only
The topic of closing down Main Street for vehicular traffic also surfaced. The debate on the matter has gone on for years, and while the town has planned to do a dedicated pilot, that has yet to occur.
Kwapis said the town is challenged by factors beyond its control, such as Metrolinx construction on the train tracks potentially impacting side streets that would become more crucial with Main Street closing to vehicles.
“There is a little bit of difficulty of co-ordinating even a pilot,” he said, adding that any such measure would also require BIA support. “The first closure will be a shorter time to understand where the challenges are.”
The concept still garners pushback. Board member Patricia Carmichael said accessibility will be an issue, with ramps up from nearby parking lots lacking.
“To close down this street for full time, I think is really going to hurt people, and there’s a lot of people that cannot get dropped off outside the store,” she said.
Finding ways to do more
The BIA is also exploring ways to improve its finances. With an approximately $30,000 to $40,000 budget from member levies, divided up between advertising and events like Canada Day and Halloween, the BIA is looking for other ways of fundraising. Ideas includes sponsorship opportunities and grant writing, with the town having a staff member working on that.
Kwapis said that the money could lead to more events or even hiring someone to boost promotion of the downtown.
The organization’s revenues have been around $40,000 in the past two years, spending $35,709 in 2021 and $19,104 in 2022, according to audited financial statements. The accumulated surplus at the end of 2022 was $84,176.
