Kansas City things

[Phil Titola]

http://www.kctv5.com/story/31369052/parking-along-kc-streetcar-route-doesnt-meet-city-ordinance?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

i realize that the supporters will ignore the ordinance (like sly has, and commands others to)

I don't know anything about Sly commanding folks to ignore the ordinance, but that is a problem.  problem for downtown businesses and also for codes enforcement. 

I wonder how many of the parking spots along main are non-compliant?

i would think they can cut out the sidewalk to make additional room in spots.  i have seen more and more businesses complaining about the lack of parking around their businesses.  we're this far into the project and it's just as ok for the city to learn about the streetcar as it is the residents who they're trying to teach.  they can get it right, they just need to admit to mistakes like this and fix them in the best way possible.

Sidewalks are already to skinny in many areas to the point of ADA compliance, this isn't an option.

[Phil Titola]

It's not like downtown lacks in parking so I don't see the true need to save every single street parking space no matter the width... But these business owners did and the streetcar authority met their requests.

Some of the spots are too narrow for a Fiat.  They're unusable in their current state. The city did not save any spots if the spots they supposedly saved can't fit a car in them.  Failure, it's ok to admit it. 

I guess it's best to ask them.

lol

Its okay you ignored that the ordinance doesn't apply... It doesn't fit your anti-sly agenda.

Let's not forget these skinny spots aren't throughout the line.. They are a couple sections (in front of Nara and in front of cascones) . I'm totally in agreement those should be repurposed and not parking spots.

[pissclams]

there are a shitload of cool homes between union hill, hyde and gillham park areas and main street, not sure how much they cost though.

[Dub]

You know what helps urban areas?  Light rail that sprawls to the outer parts of the city.  High speed light rail that families can take downtown, spend the day traveling up and down the city using the streetcar and helping the economic development down there along with taking away property taxes by countering with fares.  Keeps the younger core down there and families can still be a part of the development.

Guarantee families from PV, etc. would take a 15-20 min LR downtown and not buses.

If you're going down with your family, wouldn't you just drive?

Families here take the LR a lot.  Can relax, not fight traffic/parking/parking meters and garage fees.  Can jump around to different areas of town.  Insane usage for sporting events downtown.

[pissclams]

http://www.kctv5.com/story/31369052/parking-along-kc-streetcar-route-doesnt-meet-city-ordinance?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

i realize that the supporters will ignore the ordinance (like sly has, and commands others to)

I don't know anything about Sly commanding folks to ignore the ordinance, but that is a problem.  problem for downtown businesses and also for codes enforcement. 

I wonder how many of the parking spots along main are non-compliant?

i would think they can cut out the sidewalk to make additional room in spots.  i have seen more and more businesses complaining about the lack of parking around their businesses.  we're this far into the project and it's just as ok for the city to learn about the streetcar as it is the residents who they're trying to teach.  they can get it right, they just need to admit to mistakes like this and fix them in the best way possible.

Sidewalks are already to skinny in many areas to the point of ADA compliance, this isn't an option.

i guess we're stuck with the saved spots that aren't spots then.  suck it small business owners! 
the pro-sly contingent should go tell these idiot business owners that their losses will be offset by the streetcar, they just need MORE patience.  the dollars are coming.

[Cartierfor3]

Emo: "wow nice home, what's it worth?"
friend: "about $180,000"
Emo: "gross"

[Phil Titola]

Bike parking could bring a lot more people to their door in the same space as one car. There is parking on sidestreets of main...he'll almost every business on this line has their own off street parking...

These spots aren't working... Sounds like businesses would rather them gone than having some customer cars not fit... Test and adjust is all part of the process.

[Belvis Noland]

The City needs to incentivize business growth downtown and reward business that are already here.  this includes parking.  we live in an auto-centric city.  period.  eliminating street parking was never part of the plan and it shouldn't be.  a lot of these businesses depend upon quick in-and-out customers that don't have the time or patience to park in a garage around the corner.  if the streetcar has eliminated spots, the City needs to figure out a solution.     

[star seed 7]

Car elevators

[pissclams]

the big issue with the "there's plenty of downtown parking available" statement is that the only people that parrot it are people who live downtown.
there's a shitload of empty lots though.  i wonder if this one is open/safe to park in?  who knows, should we risk the $300 tow bill? 

[Phil Titola]

The City needs to incentivize business growth downtown and reward business that are already here.  this includes parking.  we live in an auto-centric city.  period.  eliminating street parking was never part of the plan and it shouldn't be.  a lot of these businesses depend upon quick in-and-out customers that don't have the time or patience to park in a garage around the corner.  if the streetcar has eliminated spots, the City needs to figure out a solution.     

Downtown has so many parking spots it's sickning. You are making broad statements with no details behind it.

[pissclams]

the big issue with the "there's plenty of downtown parking available" statement is that the only people that parrot it are people who live downtown.
there's a shitload of empty lots though.  i wonder if this one is open/safe to park in?  who knows, should we risk the $300 tow bill? 

[Phil Titola]

the big issue with the "there's plenty of downtown parking available" statement is that the only people that parrot it are people who live downtown.
there's a shitload of empty lots though.  i wonder if this one is open/safe to park in?  who knows, should we risk the $300 tow bill?

I totally agree some surface lots should be more clear about their ability for the public to use.... But there is a ton of street parking AND well marked surface lots and parking garages.

[Phil Titola]

Lol at townies actually buying into a shock kctv5 piece at face value about parking downtown... Nevermind you walk further to get to target or Kauffman or the grocery store than you will parking for Gallup map or antons... But freak out.

[Belvis Noland]

Downtown has so many parking spots it's sickning. You are making broad statements with no details behind it.

I'm differentiating between street parking and surface lots.  I agree the amount of surface parking is sickening, but these are separate issues.  obviously, we should continue replacing lots with development and increase density.  Of course, by doing so, it increases the importance of street parking ten-fold.   

[Belvis Noland]

Lol at townies actually buying into a shock kctv5 piece at face value about parking downtown... Nevermind you walk further to get to target or Kauffman or the grocery store than you will parking for Gallup map or antons... But freak out.

to me, the big takeaway, is not what customers are complaining about, but what businessowners are complaining about.  If a businessowner says streetparking in front of his business is important to him, who are we to question it?  I'm not saying it's some huge issue, but if a guy doesn't want to lose the parking in front of his shop, let's make sure he doesn't lose the parking in front of his shop. 

like you've said, we're not talking about very many spots here.  the vast majority of the Main St. corridor is perfectly fine.   

[Phil Titola]

Downtown has so many parking spots it's sickning. You are making broad statements with no details behind it.

I'm differentiating between street parking and surface lots.  I agree the amount of surface parking is sickening, but these are separate issues.  obviously, we should continue replacing lots with development and increase density.  Of course, by doing so, it increases the importance of street parking ten-fold.   

Street parking downtown is also sickening in its inventory. I can walk downtown at any time you'd like during the busiest time and find you a street spot within blocks.

You mentioned quick in and out parking... That has also improved downtown with shorter timeframe on many street spots within the past year

[Phil Titola]

Lol at townies actually buying into a shock kctv5 piece at face value about parking downtown... Nevermind you walk further to get to target or Kauffman or the grocery store than you will parking for Gallup map or antons... But freak out.

to me, the big takeaway, is not what customers are complaining about, but what businessowners are complaining about.  If a businessowner says streetparking in front of his business is important to him, who are we to question it?  I'm not saying it's some huge issue, but if a guy doesn't want to lose the parking in front of his shop, let's make sure he doesn't lose the parking in front of his shop. 

like you've said, we're not talking about very many spots here.  the vast majority of the Main St. corridor is perfectly fine.   

I'm perfectly fine with that and doing everything possible. ... I do question that parking on a side street isn't a valid option.

[Belvis Noland]

I'm perfectly fine with that and doing everything possible. ... I do question that parking on a side street isn't a valid option.

It is certainly a valid option.  the better option, though, is storefront parking - which is what the store owner would prefer.  we should maximize this to the best of our ability.  it's reasonable.   

 

[Emo EMAW]

A house has to be $250-$350k to be nice?

No, and I didn't say that, either. 

[Phil Titola]

I'm perfectly fine with that and doing everything possible. ... I do question that parking on a side street isn't a valid option.

It is certainly a valid option.  the better option, though, is storefront parking - which is what the store owner would prefer.  we should maximize this to the best of our ability.  it's reasonable.   

 

Agreed. That was the goal but some of these spots don't seem to be working.... Losing sidewalk is not an option... Bike parking would out a lot of people at their door front...

[Emo EMAW]

A house has to be $250-$350k to be nice?

No, and I didn't say that, either.

But it helps! 

[pissclams]

i read this awhile back and thought it was interesting-

KCMO issues downtown parking survey (& why the results likely won't highlight the solution)
Yesterday, the City of Kansas City issued an online survey to get people's opinions on parking downtown.

The questions are typical:

Do you live downtown?

Work downtown?

Is parking hard to find?

Do you have a dedicated parking space?

Do you look for on-street parking or park in a garage?

How far from your destination is too far away to park?

Etc.

No matter how the survey comes back, I can't think of a single way that the city will recognize from the survey what one of the biggest problems with downtown parking is in this city.

First of all, I don't think there is a major problem with parking downtown for 90% of people, uses and destinations -- unless you're used to pulling up to a strip mall and parking right out front of your destination for free. But compared to most cities, Kansas City Parking is cake.  And cheap.

But if there is a problem, the problem isn't lack of parking spaces.

It's lack of access to those spaces.

Because of the city policy for the past 5 decades that has mandated a certain number of parking spots for downtown businesses, far too many parking spots have become single use lots. A business owns and maintains the lot, but those spaces can only be used by those businesses -- even if the business is not open.

Let's take the surface lot at 19th and McGee that encompasses the entire city block for an example. The lot is, I believe, owned by Children's Mercy Hospital.  They then drive shuttle buses from the lot to the hospital and back every day. At night, when the majority of their staff goes home, the entire city block of parking is chained off and not accessible. On a typical First Friday, there is a struggle for people to find parking spaces at the Crossroads -- and yet, this entire block of open parking spaces sits completely empty.

This same scenario plays out with various lots throughout downtown -- where a restaurant that relies almost solely on foot traffic during the day has empty spots, but then has a shortage of parking in the evening when people drive to their location -- and yet, the empty business lots around them are sitting empty. The Star has several lots exactly like this.

In many ways, Kansas City's parking space mandates have CREATED a parking shortage downtown. In other cities, it has become financially viable for a private person to own parking garages that cater to business workers during the day, but are easily accessible for events/restaurants/night life at night. They're mixed use garages.  We have very few of those in Kansas City (there is one on the 1700 block of Main between the old TWA building and the old Retro Inferno building - -so there are some) because of the city's parking laws.

It's my hope that the city actualy takes a deep dive into the city's downtown parking situation -- and doesn't just look at a survey to conclude that "Parking is fine" or "We need more parking".

The answer isn't that cut and dried. We need more mixed use parking spaces -- that have uses both in the day and then different uses in the evening. We don't necessarily need MORE parking -- just more and better access on more occassions.

it's from 2011, not sure if the same rules still apply but i would guess that they do.
http://btoellner.typepad.com/my_weblog/2011/07/kcmo-issues-downtown-parking-survey-why-the-results-likely-wont-highlight-the-solution.html

[michigancat]

there are a shitload of cool homes between union hill, hyde and gillham park areas and main street, not sure how much they cost though.

my old house in South Hyde Park just sold again for like $113k. It was a sweet house.

[pissclams]

ya i remember it, i like that neighborhood