Village Makes Changes to New Parking Rule

Village officials and police have proposed some changes to a new parking rule after

The new two-hour, daytime parking restriction on certain streets was originally designed to discourage University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee students and staff from clogging village streets with their cars. It instead has forced business employees, customers and apartment tenants to question where they are to park.

Two-hour parking signs went up in early July, restricting parking times in the area stretching west from North Lake Drive to North Oakland Avenue and south from East Capitol Drive to East Edgewood Avenue from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. Police haven't been enforcing the new rule, however.

Based on residents' and business owners' concerns, Police Chief David Banaszynski wrote a memo outlining a solution that designates certain streets for employee parking, keeping Capitol Drive clear for customers while keeping the new two-hour parking restrictions intact.

Residents are to purchase an annual $5 permit to be able to park longer to two hours, but under the new plan — outlined by Village Manager Chris Swartz at a informational meeting Wednesday — business employees would also buy the same permit, allowing them to park on specific north-south locations.

A third of each business' employees would be allowed to park in the 3900 block of the five avenues running from North Frederick east to North Stowell. Another third would be required to park one block south of Capitol Drive on East Shorewood Boulevard, between Frederick and Downer Avenue and the final third of employees would park north of Capitol Drive, which doesn't have parking restrictions.

The village estimated how many parking spots each business will likely need but Trustee Michael Maher said the village really needs to examine what kind of parking strain ' teachers and staff will put on the new parking situation as it is located at 2214 E. Capitol Dr, across from .

Some residents at the meeting said the new parking rule has pitted residents against businesses, with the village siding with the businesses.

"It's an issue of quality of life and being able to have work vehicles come in and have friends find a place to park," resident Susan Jans said. "I feel like you are asking this really congested, densely populated area to just suck it up."

Swartz said the village is trying to come up with a compromise between the two parties and he would like to have the plan implemented sooner rather than later.

"There is no perfect answer to address parking," he said. 

Swartz said the next step is to work with Shorewood businesses to nail down how many parking spots they need and perhaps look at spreading out the employee parking to ease congestion on the blocks close to Capitol Drive.