Property taxes and the Downtown Plan are the issues dominating the debate in Evanston’s mayoral race. At least one candidate would like to see downtown parking added to that list.
“As candidate for mayor, I thought it was important I should identify a problem,” Barnaby Dinges said. “It’s a huge issue with people.”
Last month, Dinges released a plan calling for what he deems “sweeping change” to the current Evanston parking system. Under his plan, city residents with parking stickers would be able to park for free anywhere downtown between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m.
Dinges based his plan on the parking committee’s decision to implement free parking during the holidays to stimulate local business. The more time people spend shopping, the better, he said.
“The city gets so much more of its money from sales tax than it does from parking,” he said.
Rick Voss, a representative for Evanston’s parking division, declined to comment on Dinges’ proposal.
Ald. Elizabeth Tisdahl (7th), one of Dinges’ opponents in the mayoral election, said she saw the virtues of the proposed parking plan, but offered her own variations.
Free parking should last from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., and parking spots should be accessible, Tisdahl said, adding that the measure could also negatively affect the city’s budget.
“Obviously there would be a shortfall in the budget, and that would mean raising money elsewhere,” Tisdahl said. “Saying we should make up all the money on sales tax revenues is probably pie-in-the-sky.”
For Evanston to change parking, one of three things would have to happen: A new source of revenue would have to be found, the property tax would have to be increased, or the city would have to cut services.
Still, some change might be needed to stimulate downtown businesses, Tisdahl said.
“We may need the 6-to-9 change in order to keep the restaurants thriving,” she said.
Regardless of who wins the mayoral race, changing the parking ordinances would be up to the City Council.
And before the council could see any changes, the parking committee would have to make recommendations. Ald. Melissa Wynne (3rd), chairwoman of the committee, said she sees serious problems with free evening parking.
“I have concerns about it,” she said. “We depend on that evening parking to be available for our restaurants.”
Limiting downtown parking to Evanston residents would hurt the business environment, Wynne said. People from surrounding communities come to eat in downtown Evanston. Allowing residents with city stickers to park for free for long periods of time will discourage non-residents from frequenting Evanston restaurants, she said.
“What we want to do is make parking as accessible as possible to every possible customer,” Wynne said.
Another issue to be addressed in the parking debate is the use of Evanston’s garages.
Wynne supported the use of garages for Evanston residents who could not find street parking, especially since the first hour of parking is free. Although some consider the garages inconvenient, she disagreed.
“By the time you’ve driven around several times, it may make sense,” she said.
Dinges, though, said residents simply do not use the garages, which he considers a major problem.
“If I owned those parking garages, I would not tolerate them being under-utilized,” he said. “Why should it be any different for government?”
