PAGE 2, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 30, 1985, WHITBY FREE PRESS And its costing them money and customers.... Parking rules too rigidly enforced, merchants say Parking. Ask any merchant in the down- town core and he'll tell you that's his number one complaint. Not only isn't there enough of it but the "by-the-book" enforcement of parking regulations is scaring away their customers. Most of the merchants the Free Press spoke with last week felt that, far too often, people who park downtown are of- ten ticketed while run- ning back to the meter to put in another quar- ter. Some merchants told the Free Press that they've seen the town's parking enforcement of- ficer stand and wait for the metre to run out and when it does, he slaps a ticket on the car in question. Peter Worth, of the Donut 'N Burger Stop on Brock St. N: says that tickets seem to be given out with a "lack of discretion." While no merchant this newspaper spoke was critical of the town's "meter maid" personally; "he's just doing his job," they said; they all felt that the town could give him more room to excercise discretion on the job. "Essentially, to my mind, it's a hard at- titude that's been adop- ted," Worth said, "If the man isgoing to stand there and wait for the metre to run out, it's really frustrating for the merchant and the customer." Another complaint lodged by the merchan- ts is that, in their per- ception, the parking bylaw is not uniformly enforced throughout the downtown area. "He certainly appears to me, that he has come to spend a lot of his time on Brock St.," Worth said. The merchants say that the parking regulations seem to be most actively enforced on Brock St. between Mary St. and Colbourne St. and Dundas St. bet- ween Brock and Kent Sts. And the rigid enfor- cement, is costing the downtown core much needed customers. "I've had a customer run in here and buy a 50- cent cup of coffee and get a $5 ticket," Worth said, "He surely won't be back." AI Russell, of Russell Travel on Brock St. S., echoes many of Worth's sentiments. He claims that the number one complaint he gets from his patrons is lack of parking and strict en- forcement of the regulations. "We have numerous complaints from our clients about the metres and how it is always in the back of their minds while shopping or having lunch," he said, "I feel that seeking a solution to increasing the business in the downtown core, without seeking an answer to the hassle of parking is put- ting the cart before the horse and will not, in the long run, encourage people to shop in down- town Whitby." Like other merchants, this newspaper spoke to, Russell was not critical of the "meter maid" but of his superiors at the town. "I feel, personally, the job he's doing and the way he's doing it is the way the town had told him to do it," he said, "So how can you condemn this guy, which I don't." Tess and David Mat- thews, of A Touch of Class on Brock St. Nl., also say that the lack of parking space is the biggest complaint they get from their customers. However, they also point out that the on- street parking in the downtown core should not be used by local merchants or their em- ployees. It should be reserved for their customers only. The parking is not for people in the business community, it's for the customers." they said. But they also admit that when they have got- ten a ticket, they deser- ved it. "He's given me tickets and I deserved every one of them," Tess Matthews said while adding there still isn't enough parking in the downtown core. Matthews noted that when council allowed free parking in the downtown for the two weeks prior to Christ- mas last month, it was a resounding success. Both the merchants and their customers benefit- ted greatly. "It was a major step forward," shesaid. Her customers, she added complain "mostly of just trying to find a spot and the length of time on the metres." Matthews said that most of her customers find that the one-hour period on the on-street metres isn't enough for them to do their shop- ping. She says that much of the downtown parking hassle could be resolved if the town would in- troduce two-hour metres on Brock and Dundas Sts. The jeweler also noted that the town has thought of trying to at- tract a major depar- tment store to the down- town core. While she agrees that such a store would be a major at- traction for the down- town, unless there is a change in the parking situation one won't locate in the area. "You're not going to entice a large store downtown unless you have the parking," she said. 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