Downtown parking to get face-lift
Aim is to ensure access to free spaces in Dayton’s Oregon District; updates to signs, lighting planned.
Dayton business leaders and officials propose investing in new signage, wayfinding elements and upgrading the Transportation Garage to address increased demand for parking downtown and in the Oregon Historic District.
A new parking committee has crafted a short-term strategy to make it easier for visitors, residents and others to find parking.
The Oregon District Business Association plans to issue grants to help fund new parking spaces.
The idea is to pay property owners in the area to open up their parking lots for public spaces at certain times.
“Providing funding to support cooperation between Oregon District businesses and lot owners will increase the total number of available parking spaces as well as maintain and ensure continuous access to free parking in the Oregon District,” said Natalie Skilliter, chair of the Oregon District Business Association’s parking committee and owner of Corner Kitchen.
The business association plans to award grants of $20 per parking space per year for up to 250 parking spaces that are not currently free and not available for general use, according to parking committee members.
The city of Dayton also plans to spruce up the Transportation Garage by improving signage, lighting, adding public art and new paint.
These and other changes were recommended by parking consultant Carl Walker Inc. and are expected to take place this year.
The garage, located on Fifth Street west of the Oregon Historic District, has been underused, but the city contends it will see higher
use in the future after some upgrades and new signage.
Developers plan tens of millions of dollars of residential, commercial and entertainment projects located within about a block and a half of the garage, including the renovation of the Centre City building, the rehabilitation of the Dayton Arcade and the construction of a new music amphitheater.
The garage likely will be needed to serve the new developments and alleviate parking concerns in the Oregon District, said Tony Kroeger, city of Dayton planner.
“It’s time to give it an upgrade, mostly from an aesthetic standpoint,” he said.
The city completed a study of on-street parking downtown to evaluate the supply of spaces and identify areas of improvement.
City officials say it is time to revamp the Transportation Center garage, which was built in 1973 and has five upper floors.
The city-owned garage lacks obvious signage, which some people have criticized as being confusing to motorists in search of a place to park.
“When I got to this garage — and I’m a parking consultant — I was like, ‘Where the heck do you enter this thing,’” said Andrew Miller, who studied on-street parking for the city. “I see it — it’s right there — but how do I get in?”
The city is interested in adding vinyl banners to attach to the concrete sides of the garage to direct people to its entrance and advertise information about costs.
The city plans lighting upgrades to increase safety and security in the garage, and it wants to add some paint and pedestrian signage, Kroeger said.
“I think this is addressing a parking issue, which is we don’t take full advantage of the parking we already have,” he said. “It’s not always abundantly clear that this is a good place to park.”
Installing signage is a cheap fix that could pay big dividends, officials said.
The supply of parking in that part of downtown could get squeezed if some of the projects proposed for nearby properties move forward.
Just north of the parking garage is Dave Hall Plaza, which would be the new home of the Levitt Pavilion Dayton.A nonprofit group has raised about $4.5 million of its $5 million goal to construct the state-of-theart outdoor music venue, which would host at least 50 free shows a year and is expected to attract droves of fun-seekers.
The new owners of the Centre City building, located north of Dave Hall Plaza, propose spending more than $40 million to transform the empty building into housing and first-floor commercial space.
Nearby, developers plan to rehabilitate the Dayton Arcade in phases, starting with housing geared toward artistic and creative types.
If these and other projects materialize, they could put stress on the supply of parking, and it will be important to direct people to nearby parking options, officials said.