Help shoppers find parking in Westboro, report suggests
Despite merchants’ and residents’ claims to the contrary, there’s plenty of parking in Westboro, a city study finds. People just need help finding it.
The study, whose results are being reported to city council’s transportation committee next week, was aimed at deciding whether the city should start charging for parking along Westboro’s commercial strip. That would make the city money, but the real point of paid parking is to keep spaces turning over so people can get in and out for shopping and business.
No need, at least yet, the study found.
“While some block faces were operating over practical capacity, parking spaces were available within a reasonable distance,” says the report to the committee. “The study therefore does not recommend introducing paid parking at this time.”
It acknowledges that the situation has tightened up since 2011, when consultants working for the city made their count: more buildings have replaced parking lots, increasing demand for parking while reducing the supply. Even so, though, the consultants figure there should be enough parking for now. The trick is that it’s often a block or so off the main drag of Richmond Road.
“Two examples of underused lots help to illustrate the opportunity: the survey data demonstrated that when Richmond Road was at or over practical capacity, the underground spaces at Westboro Station and Vinci’s surface lot on Picton Avenue were less than 50-per-cent occupied,” the report says.
The solution city staff propose is allowing more signs pointing drivers to those private lots. A city rule limits those signs to reduce clutter, but it’s doing harm if it pushes customers away and leaves spaces unfilled. If councillors approve, city staff will come up with rules for those signs.