Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Survey shows feelings on parking
Majority of customers confirm what business owners hearing
FAYETTEVILLE — A majority of Dickson Street customers agree the downtown parking experience needs improvement, according to a survey released Tuesday.
The Dickson Street Merchants Association surveyed 1,149 customers of Dickson Street businesses and Walton Arts Center ticket holders for two weeks in April. The results confirmed what business owners have been hearing for years, said Joe Fennel, owner of Bordinos.
“Mainly our customers continue to tell us that we have a parking problem on Dickson Street and in the Entertainment District,” he said. “There’s a whole lot of ways to look at that.”
According to the survey, 64 percent of respondents perceived a lack of parking availability on Dickson Street and around the Walton Arts Center. That figure includes 80 percent of Dickson Street customers.
Just more than half, 55 percent, reported “operational issues” such as taking too long to find a spot, not having parking near their destination, an aversion to on-street parking and not having cash for event parking. Just under 40 percent of respondents reported difficulty in finding a pay kiosk, being confused or not knowing where to park.
In total, 77 percent of those surveyed said their parking experience on Dickson Street needs improvement.
The release of the survey precedes the arrival of San Francisco-based consultants Nelson/Nygaard on Tuesday. The consultants will update the City Council on the findings of the parking study and mobility plan for which the city hired them to develop last year.
The council heard an initial presentation from the consultants in the fall. City parking staff counted 9,000 parking spaces downtown with about 3,800 of those publicly owned. Downtown parking on the weekends is “functionally full” at peak times, meaning close to 90 percent capacity, according to the presentation.
The city is exploring ways to make parking easier, such as new signs, lighting, street design, making sidewalks more inviting and possibly a pilot program to couple Walton Arts Center show tickets with parking spaces, said Peter Nierengarten, the city’s director of sustainability and parking. The PayByPhone app also has been available since 2011.
Alderman Justin Tennant said the Merchant’s Association survey didn’t reveal anything he hadn’t already heard. Problems seem to stem from confusion on which lots are privately owned and the ones open to the public. Also, people don’t want to park in available spots farther away and walk to their destinations, he said.
“Between perception and education, I think it could get better,” Tennant said. “We just need to be careful before we start tearing up parking lots.”
Jennifer Wilson, director of public relations at Walton Arts Center, said the challenge is to strike a balance between parking needs and development and activity downtown. The Spring Street Parking Deck brought 235 extra parking spaces in 2015, but since Walton Arts Center’s renovation, big shows can fill up the West Avenue lot and the deck, she said.
However, many drivers in Arkansas don’t like parking decks, Fennel said. Education and signs play a key role in letting everyone know the different ways to park, but what might work in a larger city might not work in Fayetteville, he said. Many merchants, such as Fennel, have operated on Dickson Street for decades and have a keen sense for what customers want, he said.
That knowledge can only add to the consultants’ findings, Fennel said.
“Let’s get this data, look at what they have to say and try to make the Entertainment District in downtown Fayetteville even better than it is right now,” he said. “We’ve got to be competitive and do things where when people come from out of town they’re excited about coming down here and spending money.”
Mayor Lioneld Jordan said he appreciates any and all input. The city will host mobility plan workshops following the briefing from the consultants.
“We’re going to have to find the middle where everybody can agree on something,” he said. “It takes time but that’s why we do the studies and that’s why we do the public input sessions with everybody getting a chance to weigh in on it.”