After months of public meetings, deliberation, and a few tweaks to the plan along the way, paid parking will go into effect in the Dickson St. entertainment district Monday, Aug. 16.
Sharon Waters told attendees at the last of three paid parking information sessions last night that the three lots around the Walton Arts Center will require payment starting on Monday, but that the pay stations for spaces on the street will not be installed until mid week.
That means that if you live in the area, you’ve got just a few days to get this form filled out, gather one of three proof of residence options, and to turn in the necessary paperwork so that when the metered parking on the streets goes into effect, parking tickets won’t begin appearing underneath your windshield wipers.
Here is some information and links to the city forms you’ll need, as well as the other documents to round up in order to get your residential parking passes.
The Rules
Residents living within the paid parking district may obtain one hang tag per resident, and either two permanent guest tags, or 30 one-day guest passes. The passes are non-transferable.
Full rules and regulations for residential passes are available on the city’s website.
The Process
- Fill out the application
- Make a copy of your current vehicle registration for the vehicle that the permit will be issued to.
- Copy one of the following forms as proof of residency:
- Current vehicle registration showing an address within the district
- Property tax bill showing person’s name as tax payer and home address within the district identifying applicant specifically as a resident at that address.
- Residential lease agreement with address within the district, identifying applicant specifically as a resident at that address.
- Turn in the application in person with a copy of proof of residency and current vehicle registration at the Parking Management Office, fax them to 479-575-8250, or email them to parking@ci.fayetteville.ar.us.
- You will receive your parking passes in the mail.
Where is the paid parking district?
The map below will show you what has been affected by the paid parking plan. There are a handful of privately owned lots in the area – some free, some paid – that aren’t listed on the map, but those remain unchanged by this plan. Private lot owners can decide whether or not they want to charge a fee, how much they want to charge, and when to charge it, as long as they post signs.
View Dickson Street Paid Parking in a larger map
Questions?
If you have questions about paid parking, or about whether or not you qualify for the residential passes, you should call the Parking Management Division at 479-575-8280, or email them at parking@ci.fayetteville.ar.us.
What about employees of Dickson Street establishments?
@Fayettevillian Here’s a link to the information on the city’s employee discount for downtown employees. You can get up to 90% off parking in most on-street areas (not on Watson or Dickson). Your employer has to send a payroll roster to the city quarterly, and you can email a paystub monthly to the city to receive a discount code.
I’m voting against everyone who voted this overly complex abomination in.
Now that’s a clusterf**k if I have ever seen one. How long did it take them to come up with this mess? Everyone who contributed to this ought to be run out of town.
@Dustin Thanks for the info!
I’m sorry, but, I’ve been staring at this map for a while trying to comprehend this new reality, and the more I look, the more confusing it is. All three “districts” overlap? We have the same colors used for different zoning? This is insane.
OK, I’ve got a dilemma. I live within this area. I find the whole paid parking thing offensive, especially since it’s partially being used to subsidize the WAC. Plus it will generally discourage business. Regardless, I don’t *need* parking permits but I’m tempted to take one as a sort of passive-aggressive protest. Thoughts?
Innarested Observer–
Go ahead and get a permit. You are just as entitled to a permit as you were to free street parking. Perhaps even more so.
Paid Parking + Recession + More Options Elsewhere = Dickson’s Downfall.
Are they trying to kill businesses in the Dickson area?
Clarity–
I can’t swear to it, but I think the blues, greens oranges and reds in the Parking Lot legend are each two different shades. Very slightly different.
I think I used to support this idea, but now I agree this is going to hurt business.
It won’t hurt out of towner business, but it will hurt local traffic mostly.
There are a lot of options where to grab a bite in town. Sometimes I’d go down there just to eat quick, or get take out and leave. But now, having to find a meter box, pay to park, etc will make me think twice.
And it may only be $1.00 or whatever, but the convenience factor will go down, and so I probably won’t do that as often or at all.
So now, if I want to run into the Dickson St. Bookstore to browse a while, I gotta pay. If I want to call a pizza in to Rogue or US Pizza, and go pick it up, I gotta pay for the 10 minutes it takes to pick it up. George’s Happy Hour? Gotta pay. Farmers Market? Who knows, cause this map is so damned confusing.
How many city employees will it take to keep up with all this? Where are their salaries coming from?
What about workers on Dickson who don’t have credit cards, which the city requires on file before giving them a code to punch into the machines to get their parking discount?
I fear we are indeed killing the goose here.
I will never vote for Lioneld Jordan again. Anyone know when is his term up?
Coach–
For a person with “IT” in his nom de nette, you seem to be unusually devoid of the ability to do a Google search. I hope that doesn’t stand for “Information Technology”.
Ill-considered Tantrums, perhaps?
Well, on the bright side, a full on economic disaster on the street might be the only thing that could ever make it funky again. Go paid parking! Go inconvenience! let’s get some empty storefronts and bring those rents down!
what exactly is meant by “city pay all night/day”? i thought they were going to allow a grace period in the mornings to discourage drunk driving, but i have never heard anything official on this. can anybody help me out here?
Remember when Lioneld Jordan fired Gary Dumas in early 2009 for suggesting the exact pay parking plan that will be implemented within 48 hours? Remember THAT?
Admittedly, I’m getting a little excited. This is the perfect storm of ineptitude. The astronomical equipment implementation cost, the WAC-slanted payouts, the hoops and hurdles, the hypocrisy.
That parking map is delightful, just gravy. Dozens of multi-layered variables rendered in the key of “incomprehensible.” It’s a master stroke of excessive bureaucracy, a Vogon wet dream.
Fayetteville City Council, we will finally get to see your legacy bloom on Monday.
How long is it going to take for the “discount codes” to be common knowledge???….. 20 minutes? Locals will help locals and the expected parking revenue will just not be there. (for the WAC, of course)
Other than the Post Office and Collier Drug, Dickson Street has just been a fond memory for me for several years now. I’ve been spending most of my spare change in north Fayetteville and even on South School Avenue…..less congested, free parking, and actually a few funky, independent businesses….
It might help if the city would put out a map of just the spaces that are changing to pay and the residential spaces that are off limits to most people. The majority of parking spaces on that map aren’t changing. Drivers will find the free spaces if they’re willing to walk further. It would be a good idea to have a few 20 minute free spaces in the most convenient spots for quick business transactions.
Where are the free bicycle spots? They’re supposed to be in purple, but I don’t see any purple on the map…
@J.Liz – Lot #10, just north of the Hog Haus loading dock, and Lots #20, which are east and south of the WAC. They look pretty small on that map, I wonder how many bikes/scooters will fit there.
Arts Place will have to expand. Maybe we can get the Dart Room to re-open. Cheers can expect a booming business, as well.
Midtown will benefit. The most local flavor appears to exist North of North Street these days anyway.
And south of MLK.
A few 20 minute “loading zone” type spaces are a great idea.
As for the rest, I’m assuming all here went to the meetings, wrote letters or emails to their Council rep, covered up the Mayor’s office with correspondence and generally let everyone know your objections.
Me, I won’t have a problem parking a couple of blocks away for free and walking. I still get to have fun, and the WAC doesn’t get any of my money.
Just my opinion. To which their own everyone has the right.
I think it would be interesting for someone to see if they can find in the Woodland Jr. High debate footage if Jordan did say he was against paid parking.
That would be a nice find. I’m almost certain that was discussed during that debate and I’m almost certain Lioneld spoke against paid parking. Alas, I have no proof.
What’s done is done. I don’t think I personally have the foresight to plan something as complex as this scheme, but then again, I am not paid to serve the city’s best interests.
I was simply posting my feelings about convenience and my personal attitude towards this new reality now that its here.
FWIW, Art’s place is a funky pool hall and you’ll hardly ever find a douchebag there, unless, of course, yours truly has stumbled in.
@Burgerboy – Why don’t you do it? That debate was filmed by the government channel at the request of then-Alderwoman Nancy Allen. You could go to the trouble to FOIA it, but I bet a quick email or phone call to the Government Channel would have it ready right away for you to get down there and pick it up.
I can’t speak for the Mayor, but I’m also sure he’s quite willing to tell you that the concerns about parking that businesses and the Walton Arts Center have right now weren’t as obvious three years ago, when that debate took place.
@Offcamber – I remember when Gary Dumas got fired. What I don’t remember is Gary being fired for anything to do with paid parking.
You aren’t doing anyone any service when you rewrite history with your hyperbolic conspiracy theories. You might be right about paid parking, but this isn’t the way to prove your point. Paid parking might fail miserably and every one of use who voted for it might regret doing so. Only time well tell. In the meantime, if your points are so obviously true, you should be able to use actual facts to support them.
Petty, it’s hard to marginalize criticism when it’s the prevailing sentiment, eh?
The currents of government motivation and need swirl and flow, but as always, the citizens you’re responsible for respresenting are free to draw their own conclusions. It’s not reactionary crackpot conspiracy-mongering, but the natural course of informed and skeptical awareness. Any resident is duty-bound as a responsible voter to judge the following facts (yeah, *facts*, as reported on even this web site):
1. Requiring downtown patrons to pay for parking – a spending disincentive – during a nationwide downturn discretionary buying.
2. Paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to an outside pay-parking equipment company during a budget shortfall, one in which the city was considering employee unpaid leave.
3. Using public parking that services all of downtown to benefit just one of many local institutions at a projected six figures annually, about a third of expected fee intake.
Don’t confuse the pay parking scheme’s most glaring problems with critical hyperbole. You owe that much to the people who live, work, and play downtown now dealing with the headaches and consequences.
[...] you live in that area, you’ve got a couple of more days to grab your residential parking passes. Officials said last week that the street parking will remain free for a few more days while [...]
To the powers that be:
I was going to eat lunch on Dickson until I remembered that the cluster-of-a-parking-scheme went into effect today.
So it’s 6th St or Wedington for lunch now.
/Another one bites the dust.
OffCamber–
I believe Mr. Petty was responding not to criticism of the parking plan but to the apparent notion that Mr. Jordan ran for office on the one-plank platform of being against paid parking, solely so he could institute paid parking.
I hope there’s going to be a per-bike charge for parking during BikesBoobs&BBQ this fall to help pay for police overtime and cleanup. Maybe these events should start paying back all the subsidies they’ve gotten.
@charge.more
The mayor has been given 16 days that he can chose to allow folks to park for free. I’m sure those will be allotted towards BBBQ and the WAC. :/
@David Franks:
Nice mischaracterization.
The primary “notion” is the lesson that most politicians will say almost anything to get elected, and then do whatever they please once they have that salary rolling in.
And Petty, come on dude. The debate didn’t happen in 2007. It was less than 2 years ago. The paid parking discussion began about 6-7 months into the Jordan term.
3 years DNE 7 months.
Paid parking has been framed as an inevitability on Dickson.
I’m beginning to think it was an error. Only time will tell. Personally, I am not ANGRY about the paid parking and I agree we need to finance a deck. I just realize now that it will impact my decisions on how much money and time I spend on Dickson in ways I hadn’t considered before.
I didn’t think the whole thing through when I thought it was a good idea.
I think the same can be said for the city at this point.
May it flourish and produce much revenue. But I have my doubts.
I believe it was more of a gamble than the city realized initially.
i saw a map on the city’s website that makes it look like the parking deck at the library is going to be paid parking- NOT COOL
@CoachIT – I believe 14 of those 16 days are already accounted for and are part of existing festivals like BBBQ and anything else that’s an annual event which uses the WAC lot.
@InPelWeTrust – Do you by chance remember the link to that map? I’ve not heard anything about paid parking at the library.
@Offcamber – I was referring specifically to your claim that Gary Dumas was fired for being a proponent of paid parking.
@Burgerboy – You’re right. I meant 2008. I know which debate you’re referring to. It took place during the campaign and I was there with Mark Kinion and all of the mayoral candidates. I should have read over my comment more closely to notice the error before I clicked submit.
You could still get a copy of the video…
@Pel. – Nowhere on any if the maps, or at any time in the parking meetings has there ever been a mention of changing the free parking at the library.
I would have no use for the video. For some reason I just recall that being his position, because up to that point I hadn’t been aware of a legitemate paid parking discussion taking place. It appeared to me that pay parking on Dickson was being framed as “another way Coody is screwing us up” at the time, and until then I had been unaware of it.
A political opponent of Jordan’s could definitely use the video, if my memory about the debate is correct.
@Todd Gill – check this out- looks to me like they’re going to charge library patrons for parking at the library according to this map- i’m not a fan
http://www.accessfayetteville.org/government/parking_mgmt/documents/Map_of_Available_Parking_in_Fayetteville_2010-07-22.pdf
From the city’s website: “By mid October, the City will implement a Reservation System that will allow patrons to go online and reserve a parking space in advance.”
I guess I missed this in previous paid parking coverage. I couldn’t find any more info about it on the city’s website. A search for “Reservation System” only brought up the page from which I got the quote above.
Anybody know how that’s supposed to work? How will you know which spaces have been reserved? Orange cones? Little silver sign holders with “Reserved” written in fancy script on 60 lb. off-white vellum?
Also, I was under the impression that Block would not be paid parking, but unless I’m misreading this latest map, it looks like it will be. And that map really does make it look like you’ll have to pay to park at the library. Bummer.
I guess the next time I’m in Fayetteville, I’ll steer clear of the entertainment district, at least until this whole ridiculous debacle is scrapped. I don’t think the elected officials who came up with this idea have any clue how much it’s going to piss off residents and deter them from going downtown.
@InPelWeTrust – Thanks for the link. I overlooked that lot when scanning it. It’s most certainly colored orange which, in the key, is labeled “City Pay.” Very odd, as I’ve heard nothing about that in the meetings. Of course, that map you linked to is dated July 22 which is seven days before I received a similar map that had no color on the library at all.
@robertocampana – The talk I’ve heard about reserved parking was limited to a undetermined amount of spaces in the big WAC lot coinciding with WAC shows.
I live near and work on Dickson, and this is obviously an added inconvenience for our customers, but at the same time I understand that parking lots are not cheap to build and maintain and it’s not unreasonable to ask the users to help carry the cost. It will be interesting to see how demand holds up given the new fee; my fear is that a lot of commentators are correct and the combination of fee and nuisance will drive people to other destinations.
I’ve noticed a few comments about interesting businesses south of town. I don’t make it down that way very often. Anyone care to name a few that Dickson-avoiders might check out?
yeah paid parking at the library? come on, don’t we already pay property tax $ to the library? total BS
good bye heading down to hog haus to have a beer with friends after work and hello to a six pack of better beer on my deck – bring on the fall colors!
The conversations I’ve had with the Fayetteville Public Library have never suggested a move to charging for parking in the library garage.
As a general-rule-thumb if the space you want to park in has an old-style meter (the kind that gets fed coins), it’s free after 5 p.m. and on weekends. There are lots of these — E.J. Ball lot, Church Street, etc.
For more info and an interactive map of the downtown and Dickson Street area go to http://www.nwaonline.com/faypark/
Anyone want to take bets on how long they’ll have this up before they scrap the whole thing? I’m thinking sometime after WAC makes their decision to move to Bentonville and before the next mayoral election.
Fayetteville has some room to grow South of downtown. A silver lining of pay parking might be that the businesses and patrons slighted by the city and WAC make a concerned effort to develop that direction.
South of MLK on School, you have Momma Dean’s, the flowery Thai restaurant, Rick’s Iron Skillet, the Mexican eateries, etc. We’ve also seen all the development down Razorback Road South of MLK out towards Cato Springs Road. People looking for downtown alternatives should support those businesses.
There are a number of shuttered businesses down School on the way out to the airport, but that means the properties are cheap, if anything. The opposite of Dickson, and ripe for off-Dickson development. The area around the Southgate Shopping Center at School/15th is a good place to get something started. You have the proximity to Walker Park, campus, and MLK. I would love to see Dickson Street “recolonize” down there.
I used to live down near 15th St., and it was always real shabby. I never felt unsafe as a kid or walking to the U of A as an adult, but it was definitely the low-rent Fayetteville. Start dumping some money/enthusiasm into those neighborhoods and revitalizing area homes/businesses, and you have something more grassroots and prideful than the forced up-market turn of Dickson over the last few years.
My family and I have been eating on Dickson St. knowing that paid parking was coming. Now that it is here we will no longer be patrons of Dickson St. Paid parking discourages business especially when there are many more options in town.
As if the gentrification of Dickson Street hadn’t gone far enough…this should just add to the phenomenon. Its getting harder and harder to be a regular person who just wants to head downtown for a beer or quick bite to eat. Fortunately for myself, I often park at a friend’s house and walk 5 or 6 blocks to Dickson street. But this will certainly cut out all of those times I want to drive down to browse the shelves of the bookstore or grab a bite to eat.
@ Spongeworthy – LOL!!!
@ Duck Hunter – I get that it will be an extra charge on you rmeal, but I really stuggle to see where $.40 weeknights ($.75 Fri-Sun)is going to make much of a difference on most family’s total bill for an hour and half dinner??
@ InPelWeTrust – here is link to the latest parking map dated 8-16. There is no color coded area where the library is on this latest map. http://www.accessfayetteville.org/government/parking_mgmt/documents/Map_of_Parking_in_Entertainment_District_2010-08-13.pdf
And finally……..
@ robertocampana – the way the reservation system has been explained in all of the meetings was another way to gaurantee someone would have a space when they come down to Dickson St. The option would allow folks to log on to a website (specific web site was never mentioned) and reserve a space in the big parking lots that ar pay by the hour. If the reservation was made at 6:30 for the main lot across from the WAC, that reservation will be held until 6:50. If at that time, the reservation will b disallowed and the “reserved” spot will be given out to the the next vehicle that attempts to enter the lot. The reservation fee would be forfeited to the city,and the spot will be open to rent out again. This option will be linked to the WAC and restaurant websites as an added convience option.
The parking system is supposed to be able to keep up with the amount of available spaces, and only let cars in if there are open spots. The reservation system was not ready for prime time this week. It and the “pay by cellphone” option will be added to the current system in October as you mentioned. The pay by cell system will allow you to add money to you on street parking spots from where ever you are if you find your self drinking one more beer than anticipated. The main lots will not need this option as you will only be charged as you leave and pay only for the time you use, $2.50 or $5.00 maximum depending on the day.
I’m thinking of all the obviously quite poor Mothers I always see in the PUBLIC library with 3-4 young children, checking out their stack of books and dvd’s that provide their only home, young, literacy education. Thinking about how many of them will stay away because they don’t have the money to pay for formerly, properly, FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY PARKING already paid for with their own tax dollars when they formerly checked out PUBLIC library materials. This is a sad day for Fayetteville.
@Sadness The most recent map posted on the city’s website today does not indicate paid parking at the library. We’ll double check.
@Mullva – the map you linked to is the entertainment district which doesn’t extend enough to the South to include the area where the library is- I believe the library is in the Downtown district
@InPelWeTrust – I’ll verify it later today, but this is a newer map of the entire area and the library isn’t listed as paid.
cool Todd, appreciate it
@Skip – I sure wish I could embed that map on other sites…
As long as Dickson St hookers can validate, I am cool with this.
Gotta agree with @vandelay regarding the further gentrification of Dickson here. I don’t make it down that often anymore, but when I do I generally spend >$50. What’s another few bucks? But I’m not going to kid myself…I’m not really “Keeping Fayetteville Funky” anymore. I’m just some hybrid yuppie-hippie with disposable income. What about the broke-ass freaks man?
I took a stroll around Dickson street last night and saw the guys from the Free Weekly taking some funny pictures of the parking meters last night (i.e. – sledgehammers and bush trimmers were involved).
I also noticed that every time someone put money in a meter to pay for parking, they would follow up with a few fake jabs towards the meter to show their frustration (never saw anyone actually punch the machine).
Finally, and I hope someone will set up a time lapse video to capture this scenario… Over and over, I watched cars pull into the WAC lot that was once free, only to quickly reverse their car and drive off to find another spot once they realized they were going to pay.
I’m curious to see how this will affect everything long term. Right now there is a tremendous amount of controversy associated with the paid parking, and the plan to explain it clearly has not been executed very well at all.
Best of luck for both sides of this.
Getting people to pay for what they once got for free is a hard sell even in a market without a direct competitor. And despite what Petty and others think, Dickson doesn’t exist in a vacuum and there are plenty of alternatives.
Is the Fayetteville Mayor up for election this Novemeber because this parking meter thing is just a big TAX sham for the WAC which will move to Bentonville anyways and they will never build a parking garage with out the expanded WAC . We need a new mayor who cares about creating jobs and keeping business instead of running them out of town to Sprindale or Bentonville. Just a reminder Mayor jordan you dont spend money to get out of a Recession like parking meters .
For those of you who are saying “what’s an extra $0.40, blah, blah;” I just wanted to let you know that I was down there last night and one of the only parking places we could find was $2/hr!!!! That means is cost us an extra $4 just to eat dinner, and even then, we couldn’t just decide to extend our evening, b/c we were too busy watching the clock to make sure we left the restaurant before our time expired. Way to welcome back students (although I am not one myself, but still) City of Fayetteville.
I had to run through town today and observed that cars parked in any of the pay lots could be counted on one hand. Empty lots translates to people finding other places to eat lunch in Fayettenaum and not have to pay for parking. It seems to me when the city counsel/mayor are worried about tax income from the local places why they would ever agree to this paid parking plan. I would guess that perhaps business’s will be moving to a free parking area of the city. There are certainly enough empty buildings in town. Have the powers that be killed the golden goose?
I noticed fewer cars than usual parked along Dickson when I went to the post office after lunch.
Back when I had time to hang around Dickson during the day – the majority of parkers in the “WAC” lot looked very collegiate, were carrying backpacks and walking west on Dickson. Some even drove over the curb/sidewalk if they were too impatient to wait til 10am for the gates to open. So, I’d say my personal take was daytime, easy parking was taken by students. Now that it is pay, they’ll have some choices to make…pay to park at the UA, park in neighborhoods and walk, take the bus. Wah wah. If you don’t like paying for parking, walk. According to google maps – parking at the library and walking to the intersection of School and Dickson is .4 miles and takes 7 minutes. I’m pretty sure the last time I looked for a primo free parking spot on Dickson, I drove for more than 7 minutes and .4 miles.
If you don’t like the municipal services provided by Fayetteville – move to Springdale. Or better yet – join a city committee or at least attend a meeting and email your council members, you whiners.
@ Bird – you were parked in a private lot. They are allowed to charge whatever they want on their own property. The lot right next to the train bank is $2.00 an hour, while the city owned WAC lot across the street was $1.00 last night! The city lots are only $0.50 and hour M-F 10-5 and $1.00 an hour with a $5.00 max on one night.
The city will start offering students a limited number of paging passes for the WAC lot at $35.00 a month and able to park all day until 5:00pm. The number is supposed to be capped to leave spaces for the lunch crowd.
Here is a link with all of the payment information
http://www.accessfayetteville.org/government/parking_mgmt/documents/Entertainment_District_Parking_Rates.pdf
All day, until 5pm; uhm care to explain how that’s all day?
It’s not “all day”. It’s “all day until 5″. Do you understand what a prepositional phrase is and what role a prepositional phrase plays in modifying the original clause?
Or do you just feel like being snarky and putting someone down so you can feel better about yourself?
Many consider the “day” to start at 10 (after the morning) and be over at 5. Then begins the “evening”, which shockingly enough, leads to the “night”. I know, I know, its complicated.
@Zaff
I think that morning is actually supposed to end at noon, and that what you’re calling “day” is actually a subset of day known as “afternoon.” Morning is the first part of “day.” Day is followed by night, which consists of “evening” and “[late] night.”
As I understand it the parking rates decrease as you get farther away from Dickson St. The parking spaces most convenient and closest to Dickson St. will have the highest cost per hour. If you want cheap parking go a couple blocks off Dickson and walk. Better yet, ride a bike, take a bus or get in one of the pedicabs(coming soon $1 per ride – tips welcomed).
@mpetty – FYI, we’re working on a map similar to the one that’s linked above. It’ll be updated to reflect the most recent plan. We’ll make sure it’s embeddable.
Have we ever gotten a firm answer about the library parking? Paid, or not?
Sadness–
Why don’t you call and ask them yourself?
Damn your logic @David Franks! I just called them. The library garage is not pay-to-park and as far as they know there are no plans in the works to make it so.
@mpetty, @all – We made a map today of ONLY the areas that are affected by the new paid parking plan. We’ve put it on the same page as all of our paid parking coverage because it will likely be updated a lot. We still need to add bicycle/scooter parking once those areas are finalized and properly marked.
http://www.fayettevilleflyer.com/paidparking
@George – You’re right. The library is not a part of the paid parking plan.
George–
I get that a lot, particularly from undifferentiated anonymous commenters.
The parking kiosks are an eyesore, the communication is awful, and the very office in charge of implementing these changes doesn’t even know what’s required as far as paperwork goes. Charging for the lot across for WAC made sense, but everywhere on Dickson and the surrounding residential areas is disgraceful.
@ Hal Jordan….
I enjoy the parallels that can be made from “Hail Jordan” I still haven’t received my street side permit. And, yes the required paperwork and registering process made me feel like a jew…
“as far as they know…” Well, that’s real reassuring.
Good thing you didn’t waste time calling, then.
@CoachIT – Dude, you won’t receive your permit until you report to City Hall for your tattooing. There’s a mandatory shower afterward, so don’t forget to bring a towel!
@Todd Gill- great job on the map. For those without smart phones it would be good to print that off and carry in their car.
Six months from now when the uproar has died down paid parking will seem as normal as it does in most city centers. People will appreciate the order created and a revenue stream will have been found for a parking deck.
Oh well. No more lunch on Dickson Street or the Square.
So, if the library parking deck is not paid, what’s the first thing that’s going to happen? It’s going to fill up with cars having nothing to do with the library, right? And it’s going to become hard to actually go the library.
This will be nice for non-Dickson businesses. I was in the mood for Kosmos last night but then I realized it was pay parking now so I went to Sassy’s. I bet alot of people will have that realization and will be driven to another venue. Either way, Fayetteville gets the tax revenue, and some off Dickson businesses could use the boost. It is a shame for Dickson and it cements my departure from that area, but there is a silver lining.
@ question: I think that will only be true during times you likely aren’t at the library anyways.
@David Franks
Don’t bother with @Sadness, he/she will complain about something no matter what. Actually picking up a phone and calling the library is just an unrealistic expectation.
@CoachIT: made you feel like a Jew? WTF exactly does that mean? Pretty offensive. Mods, y’all OK with this?
I can park at the library, and be at George’s in 7 minutes, AND enjoy the trail system for my walk. Cool.
@IO…don’t you think CoachIT is referring to the Nazi era oppressive process with the star of david on the clothing, etc. It’s crude, but not offensive imho. Although, some holocaust survivors might take offense at the comparison of someone “burdened” with parking regulations to the murdered 6 million.
@Daniel Maner
While I agree with you that many city centers have paid parking, I have been to only one that charges for on-street parking after 5 or 6 p.m. and on weekends, and that’s at Deep Ellum in Dallas. I’ve never paid for on-street parking in the evenings or on weekends in any other city I’ve been to, even in the entertainment districts. Paying to park on the street at these times is not common.
I’m fine with paid street parking during normal weekday business hours and also with private lots and decks charging whatever they want. But I think there should be options for those of us who don’t mind walking a bit to avoid paying to park.
Re. the library, I can’t see how the library will be okay with people parking there and walking to Dickson Street, certainly not during operating hours, but even after hours. They might not charge for nighttime and weekend parking now, but I can see it happening soon. After all, isn’t the whole point of this plan to make sure than anyone who comes parks downtown pays to do so?
If the library deck starts filling up at night with people going do Dickson, why would the city not start charging for those parking spaces?
I will be very surprised if this paid parking scheme is widely considered “normal” in six months and if people appreciate the “order created.”
Also:
Thank you Fayetteville Flyer for doing what the city apparently could not – creating a straightforward, user-friendly map of the paid parking areas.
re the library: place a free parking deck in the midst of this paid parking, and, of course, that free parking will be abused by non-library patrons. Then, when it is, they either have to charge, or try to implement some system of guards to enforce library-only use. Whomever said “clusterf**k” was right.
I’m not so sure about that library theory. I wonder how many people will either not know / forget about it as an option or are just too lazy to walk their fat asses that far? My bet is that the library deck will not be heavily utilized….at least in the near future.
George–
I wish I could agree. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people out there who will go out of their way to spite the system. That appears to be the basic appeal of the Tea Party.
LOL. I won’t argue with that. I’m guilty of using spite as a motivating factor in many of my life decisions. (Tea Party not included)
We shall see.
So, you’re a student used to parking in the WAC lot. It’s been free, and you can grab a brew and some food when you head back toward your car after classes each day. It’s 2&1/2 blocks to the free library parking, and you can still hit Dickson St. on your way.
As an employee of the Fayetteville Public Library, I am very concerned that the FPL deck will fill up with non-library users. It’s already hard enough to find a spot during events, and it will be impossible for library patrons to utilize the facility if we add Dickson Street traffic on top of that. As for the theory that Dickson Street revelers will be using the deck during off-peak hours, that’s still not terribly comforting. I envision that locking the library down at night will become a hassle, and opening in the morning will likely involve a certain amount of hosing down puke and dealing with the previous nights’ left-over vehicles.
This parking plan is a pain for another reason – it affects the walkability of the city. On the one hand, it is encouraging walking for those who live near enough to the entertainment district to feasibly do so. But as businessess start to hurt from the decrease in spending, several will likely pull out and move to a less walkable but more parking friendly location. I am also a resident of the entertainment district and have had the joy of applying for my permit. While it was a headache, I was happy that the woman I spoke with at the city seemed to realize that everything was confusing and disorganized. They were very helpful and didn’t make the process nearly as difficult as I had aniticpated.
Hmmm, Iheartnerds,….guess the locals have a more realistic feel for what’s actually happening that out-of-towner know-it-all’s. The library parking deck is designed for the library only…not for any over-flow for the entertainment district. Yet, it is smack in the middle of these three paid parking districts, and is the ONLY free parking on this map. DUH!!!
Sadness–
If you can’t be bothered to find things out for yourself, it doesn’t matter where you live or what you know.
@ robertocampana – I think the reasoning is that there is enough demand after hours for parking in the areas that have become paid parking that they should make all spaces paid to avoid confusion and drivers circling to snag those few spaces. I do agree that some onstreet parking spaces should be free for a limited time and maybe that will be one of the tweaks that come about.
The square doesn’t have the parking demand and so certainly should not be paid parking after hours. Like Deep Ellum, The Kansas City Power and Light District has paid parking at all times in all areas and it is not cheap at all.
@Iheartnerds – apologies for steering people to the library garage. There are actually MANY free, street parking spaces within 1/2 mile of the Dickson/School intersection (my personal definition of middle of Dickson).
I just google mapped one block I know of, closer in distance and walking time than the library deck. But I’m not sharing, because the last time I shared info on my primo spot with a friend, I kept seeing her car there and then her friends’ cars there.
Hint: You will have to parallel park, you will have to walk 1/2 mile or less, an incline may or may not be involved.
@Todd and/or @Dustin – in all your spare time, could you please mark the streets that are still old school meter, no parking at all streets, and expand your map to the Square? Gracias.
It seems these days almost $1,000,000 (yes, that is one million dollars) of taxpayers’ money doesn’t buy what its used to. Pay stations have been installed approximately a week and they are already malfunctioning. Attached is a quick picture of a station I snapped with my phone that is already nonfunctional. Also the bill readers in multiple units don’t seem to validate close to mint condition bills. I found this out after walking to 3 locations while trying to go have a nice dinner with my sister who is visiting from out of state.
http://i34.tinypic.com/euhqi0.jpg
@Daniel Maner
“Like Deep Ellum, The Kansas City Power and Light District has paid parking at all times in all areas and it is not cheap at all.”
I don’t know what the policy was in the past, but it’s currently free to park in Deep Ellum each day until after 6 or 7. I think this is intended to help the flow of patrons during lunch and business hours for the companies with offices there.
As a former Fayetteville resident now living in Dallas, it’s surprising and absurd to me that Dickson Street now has a more expensive and complex parking system than Deep Ellum.
Despite qualms about cost, economic impact, and WAC kickbacks, I still wanted to visit Dickson Street every so often. Once there, it turns out the little inconveniences – not the big-picture flaws – peeve me the most.
The big stencil-painted numbers painted on the ground up and down the parallel parking are garish and obtuse, and the toll pillboxes stick up like sore thumbs. When future downtown promotional literature hits the press, are they going to Photoshop all that out, or will they leave the area looking like Stalag 17?
Oh, and guys: if you’re prone to entering no-win situations, start brainstorming alternatives now. I found out the hard way that free parking alternatives will not fly with women dressed for going out, no matter how nice the evening. Something about walking uphill both ways in overly flimsy, ornate shoes (don’t ask), yet not being entirely pleased with the prospect of economics of needing a metered spot for a few drinks (don’t argue).
The sum of the hassles big and small is a dull, sobering sense of disappointment. However small my personal financial toll, the simple notion of an impersonal, gentrified “Entertainment District” doesn’t fire my enthusiasm like the model of the old reliable hangout we used to just know as “Dickson Street.”
I feel the same way about the tacky numbers up and down the street. This mornings NWA says that festivals will have to look beyond Dickson St. to other venues for their set ups. No city I have lived in ever charged for parking after 5:00 pm. I’m not sure they are going to open the WAC parking lot for events like Blues, Bikes and BBQ. They don’t want to miss any parking fees so the city has more to give the WAC.
Since the library will almost surely be affected by non-user poaching of parking spots, one possible way to deal with it might be to set up card reader machines at the exits that require some sort of validation from the library. Those who park during operating hours without using the library get to pay a nice fat fee. Or maybe require a library card to get into the parking structure at all, then some form of the above. Could be difficult since the deck wasn’t built with this kind of thing in mind, but something like it will probably be necessary.
Why should BB&BBQ get special preference over any other festival? Perhaps they should start PAYING THEIR OWN WAY and stop freeloading off the taxpayers.
You want other festivals, give all the same chance for free parking and siting.
OffCamber–
You make an interesting point about the aesthetics of the implementation of paid parking. There’s nothing charming about traffic control markings. As for the inconvenience to the ladies, I suspect that there will be no more walking involved from a paid parking place than from some place you scrounged for, and the walking will probably be safer, as the paid parking areas are likely to be better maintained and lighted than most of the streets, gutters and sidewalks in the vicinity. It might even be worth a dollar or two to pay for ankle injury avoidance. (A better measure, of course, would be reasonable footwear.)
No way the library can remain as is. Yes, they will be forced to add a gate, with card/ticket reader, which a patron gets processed same time they check out a book, somehow. Who pays for all this?
@marian kunetka – The city is allowed to close that parking lot 16 days each year for events. From what I’ve gathered at the meetings I’ve attended, it definitely plans to utilize all of those days. Most of them, however, are already taken up by existing festivals. I’m nearly finished with a story about that, if you’re interested.
@festivals – To clear up your comment, the original BBBQ does not receive taxpayer money (A&P) any more. Its organizers did, however, start a new festival this year which received funding help.
@festival:
The 16 days that the mayor has been given the right to make parking free is nothing more than an reestablishment of the good ole boy system. But if we ever build a parking deck, the best spot would be the current parking lot west of WAC, and that would completely change the way most festivals interact within that area.
Well, sounds like I should just go ahead and change my avatar to a picture of the library parking deck.
Noodles has a great patio for drinking, along with good Italian food. Buffalo Wild Wings does a fun karaoke night on Friday nights. Both are easily accessed via the Scull Creek and Mud Creek trails on bike or foot.
Art’s Place on College has a great juke box and the feel of grittier old Fayetteville.
Also, free parking. :)
Todd Gill – yes I would be interested in your story.
I don’t think we should stop going to Dickson St. because the CITY has imposed this paid parking fiasco. It’s not the business owners’ fault – but they will surely ultimately suffer because of it. Last night, some friends parked their motorcycles in a “non” paying spot(i.e., no numbers), cops came and started giving tickets – the ticket is $70!!!
@marian – Here ya go.
Actually it is partly the business owner’s fault if as the city staff and council has repeatedly said the businesses supported the plan.
Remember, remember – vote them out in November!
@chris c – I have never been to Deep Ellum during the day so I stand corrected on it being paid parking all day. I do think the situations are very different though- Dickson Street’s parking woes are from growth and anticipation of future growth. Deep Ellum is an established area that doesn’t seem to be seeing a lot of growth- it seems to barely be holding on as it is.
It seems to me that the main purpose of the new parking plan is to generate revenue for the city and WAC – higher parking fees so that rich people can attend more Broadway shows. That’s just not fair.
I only have a finite amount of discretionary income. If some of it has to go for paid parking, then I’m going to have to cut back on other expenses. So, for example, when dining in a restaurant on Dickson Street I may have to tip less and/or order less food. It’s simple economics.
There is no free lunch.
@Amazon Dot Com – Dude, parking is $0.50 an hour during the day, and $1 an hour at night. If you can’t afford that, why the hell are you eating out in the first place?
Paying a couple of bucks to park close to Dickson is a DETERRENT, that’s it. When and if we hear the “Downtown Businesses are suffering” speech, all the spin in the world will eventually fall on the Paid Parking choke hold we now enjoy in our entertainment district.
It’s not that bad people, it’s not good either…
“There is no free lunch.”
Parking lots (and on-street parking, for that matter) don’t just magically appear and maintain themselves; the money has to come from somewhere. At a time when everybody feels the pinch– and complains about it– doesn’t it seem fair to generate revenue from the people who use the amenity? Why should everybody in town pay for that parking? Besides providing a convenience, the city maintains the lots and loses tax revenue from “higher and better” uses. Why should people who don’t park take the hit?
You could teach those conniving waitpersons and baristas a lesson by punishing them for their parking scheme. Or you could drink water with your meal; the cost of parking would be covered by the cost of one person’s coffee, soda or iced tea.
@Todd Gill: maybe you can clear up then exactly how much money has been paid to the City for police services/overtime and cleanup. Also what about sales taxes from vendors? How much has been paid? Let’s see some stats backing up your statement that BB&BBBQ pays its own way.
@festivals – I can’t clear any of that up. All I can speak to are the Advertising & Promotion Commission’s funding awards.
@David Franks
If 100% of the money from the paid parking went to maintaining the parking areas there would be less complaints. The fact that $327K/year has been earmarked for the WAC rather than maintenance of existing parking and/or construction of a deck that the city thinks we need is what has a lot of people pissed off.
Over the course of several FF stories on paid parking, people have mentioned something to the effect that there is a shortage of parking in the entertainment district. I haven’t lived in Fayetteville in a couple years, but this seems overblown to me. I never had a problem finding parking unless there was a football game, festival or other major event. There’s an ad on this site for parking at Underwood Plaza for $30 a month. So, there are spaces available for less than $1 a day in a parking deck on Dickson Street. There are also empty spaces at privately owned pay lots the vast majority of the time.
And yet we simply must start charging at night and on weekends for on-street parking so we have money to give to WAC and to build another parking deck because there’s this pressing shortage of parking.
This doesn’t add up to me. Why does the city need a deck? I lived in Fayetteville for 10 years and never had a problem finding a (free) parking space.
Also: I’m getting really tired of notions like ol’ Zapp Brannigan’s that somehow, anyone who balks at paying $0.50 or $1 an hour for parking shouldn’t be eating out.
Yeah, it doesn’t sound like a lot when you parse it that way, but consider this: let’s say John Doe makes $28k a year and goes to Dickson St. about three or four times a week, to get beers with his friends at Kingfish or Rogers Rec, or maybe to grab a falafel and then peruse used books.
Now let’s say John will have to spend an extra $8 a week for parking. That would be the cost for a couple hours for lunch or book browsing during the day and six or seven hours a week in the evenings.
Multiply that out for a year, and all of a sudden, John’s shelling out an extra $400 bucks or so annually.
There are probably a lot of people in a lower income range who patronize businesses in the entertainment district. They can afford used books and cheap beers, but an extra $400 or so a year will certainly be a deterrent, and they will go elsewhere.
How much should someone have to make a year for the privilege of going to Dickson St.?
@Michael:
Agreed!
“I never had a problem finding parking unless there was a football game, festival or other major event.”
THIS.
Michael–
That is a good point, in light of my comment. In light of the observation that “There is no free lunch”, however, even if you claim that the WAC provides no direct value to you, dammit, it provides value to the city as a whole. Of course, that value is particular to the patrons of the WAC, who now will have to pay to park when attending the elitist galas held there. (Just think– they’ll have to pay the higher night rate when they attend their exclusive soirees.) Paid parking is the great equalizer.
robertocampana–
Your solution for the alleged parking problem, then, appears to be paid parking.
So John Doe has an insatiable appetite for entertainment. If he’s going for a quick bite and to browse for used books, then I’d say it’s a shame that he’d be deterred by pay parking, while wondering how he finds time to read if he’s browsing for books three or four nights a week. If he’s having a few beers with friends three or four times a week, he could cover his parking costs by drinking a couple fewer beers a week, and the world would be a safer place. Of course, if one of his friends is a designated driver, then they’re carpooling, and the cost of parking is much lower per person. (Note that any math done in order to assess the cost of parking relative to entertainment must assume that there is no value whatsoever to reading or being with friends.)
Chris C. –
I’m assuming “THIS” refers to the five home football games this year plus four days for BB&BBQ plus maybe another five days for assorted other events. So the 14 days when downtown experiences a parking crunch out of 365 days in a year means the city needs another deck? Which will likely sit empty much of the time? Sounds like a waste of money to me. Everybody who wants to get to the game can get to the game, just like they’ve been doing for years. Same for BB&BBQ and other events.
David Franks —
There is no parking problem. There is already plenty of paid parking, so why is another deck necessary?
Re. the cost of parking scenario I described, your facetiousness is real amusing and all, but my examples were just that: examples. Maybe John “Insatiable Appetite” Doe only buys books once a week or once every two weeks? Maybe he gets lunch every day during the last week of odd-numbered months and the first week of even-numbered months? Maybe he’s drinking near beer? Who cares where he goes? It doesn’t matter. If somebody goes out two nights a week for three hours a night, that’s $6 a week. That’s $312 a year.
Someone who drives to the area regularly will now have to pay several hundred dollars a year to do so. That’s real money to a lot of people.
Carpooling and DDs are great. I wish more people would use them. But that doesn’t change the central issues with this paid parking scheme.
The issues are: there is no parking problem downtown the vast majority of the time; this will deter a good number of people from going downtown, and it doesn’t matter whether you think that’s a “shame.”
Robert, I was saying that I agreed with you. :)
I’ve never been able to not find a parking spot. Sometimes it just takes a little more patience, which most people don’t have.
The idea that Fayetteville is some exploding metropolis rapidly outpacing its parking availability is silly. Yes, Fayetteville is growing. Yes, something needs to be done. But it should be more gradual. And it could probably even be covered by a private solution. Like the Underwood deck. Or, gods forbid, the Legacy deck.
Oh yes, the WAC patrons are going to be the big spenders when it comes to paid parking…
If the WAC truly needs an additional $327K a year maybe they should hit up their well heeled patrons and donors rather than having the city shakedown people who don’t give a damn about the WAC, but want to go to George’s, Buster Belly’s, Common Grounds, Rouge, etc.
@ Chris
Don’t forget the municipal deck on the square; I’ve never seen more than a car or two in it of late.
Zapp Brannigan said: “Dude, parking is $0.50 an hour during the day, and $1 an hour at night. If you can’t afford that, why the hell are you eating out in the first place?”
Spoken like a rich person. Occasionally – when we can afford it – my partner and I will eat out. We don’t go to expensive restaurants. We usually just go to places like Kosmos or Jimmy Johns. Even us poor folk are entitled to a night on the town every once in a while.
Anyone who insists that he derives no benefit from the WAC is merely refusing to accept the fact that the WAC provides value to the city, which ultimately benefits them. Failure to give a damn about the WAC doesn’t change that fact.
robertocampana–
I thought you thought John Doe’s plight was a shame– you brought it up. I was not being facetious, and I’m not denying that you have a point; I’m showing you that it isn’t as big a deal as you think it is. Your own extrapolation indicates that we are in agreement on that.
The “vast majority of the time” when there is no parking problem, as you say, is when the parking is relatively inexpensive. I’ve seen parking meters that cost $1.25 an hour (downtown Little Rock), so paid parking in Fayetteville during the day will be relatively cheap. I suspect that the nearness/cost factor for U of A students compared to the University parking garages will induce them to go ahead and pay to park; that would be a new revenue stream for the city.
Since you wish to change the subject from the complaints about subsidizing the WAC with paid parking: No proposal for merely adding to available parking has been seriously discussed. At one time, a deck was considered necessary because it was to be developed with retail and service space, which would add to the need for parking. As a general rule, built-up properties are preferable to parking lots in downtown areas, and a parking garage with business frontage would help to reinforce the notion of downtownness, while adding to the liveliness of the scene and generating more tax revenue than a vacant lot. Now one or more parking garages with retail and service space are part of Fayetteville’s proposal for the expansion of the WAC. And if I’m going to pay for parking, I’d rather pay to park somewhere out of the sun, rain or snow.
Michael–
WAC patrons will spend just as big on parking as the rest of us– even bigger if they have dinner before a show and drinks afterward.
I guess what bothers me about the whole move toward pay parking is that it doesn’t seem like a very “Fayetteville” thing to do.
Does that make sense to anyone else?
Chris, I hear you. Of course, I remember when the idea of putting a giant, Wal-Mart funded art center, one that would almost never feature any rock and roll of any kind and which would change the entire scale of what was built on the street, on Dickson, didn’t seem like a very “Fayetteville” thing to do either.
chris c–
It makes perfect sense to me.
I am by no means a Fayetteville old-timer, having first moved to Fayetteville in 1979, but I am as skeptical of change as anybody– more so than many. Since 1979, quite a few things have happened that didn’t “seem Fayetteville”. Attendance at University summer sessions ballooned, and the quiet Fayetteville summer was lost forever. The whole east side of the Square became a bank. The Music Festival of Arkansas was created, which seemed very ambitious for the region. The Walton Arts Center was envisioned and built– a very uncharacteristic coming together of University, city, commerce and the public in general. Dickson Street, which had been slowly changing anyway, became a viable place for development that began to realize its potential. The county moved the courthouse to the old FirstSouth building. The Music Festival of Arkansas ceased to be, apparently indicating a shift in public tastes. Two-lane roads became four-lane roads….
None of these things “seemed Fayetteville” when they happened, but they became Fayetteville. Every weird one of them became part of the normalcy that was disturbed by the next one.
On the surface, the move to paid parking is quite a shock. Seen as a consolidation of existing paid parking conditions and as an attempt to lay groundwork for the next couple of weird things, it becomes part of the pattern of events that haven’t– and won’t– destroy Fayetteville.
@Amazon Dot Com – The joke’s on you, I don’t pay for parking at all. Why, this very evening I had the help drop me off in the stretch Escalade for my Jimmy John’s fix, then pick me up afterward. Sure, I could afford the extra $1 necessary to park my car long enough to enjoy a #5, but it feels good to thumb my nose at the city. I’ve never paid for parking in Fayetteville and I’m not about to start now.
Mr. Franks–
Right on about how new things disturb the old and then become the old to become, in turn, disturbed again. I moved here in 1980. Thirty years ago. Doesn’t seem that long ago, but just for fun, how long to we have to be here and how much change do we have to witness before we become “old-timers”? Maybe we HAVE become old-timers!
Being a history buff and preservationist I recognize the value of consistency and maintaining our legacy. Understanding our past and being able to continue to experience pieces of it helps keep us grounded in our present. Over the years we’ve lost many great things in Fayetteville and we suffer for it all the more today.
That being said, that doesn’t mean we should be stagnant and stay mired in the past and “that’s the way we’ve always done it.” As communities grow in population and activities change and the culture adjusts, the community and its infrastructure must change with it. That’s reflected in things as significant as our trail system, library and paid parking, and as small as the markings on the street to indicate bike lanes.
“Progress” for the sake of progress is not sustainable; I believe we have seen that. So, also, keeping things the way they always have been just to avoid change is not viable.
Finding the balance has always been the challenge and the great debate. As it is here, now, with this topic, and will be again with the next.
Just my opinion. To which their own everyone has the right.
Chris C. –
Sorry for the misunderstanding! And I agree, paid parking doesn’t seem like a very Fayetteville sort of thing do.
I gotta agree with Urk too, that many things that once seemed very un-Fayetteville have come to pass. Paid nighttime parking, while certainly not as visible a change as the WAC, Three Sisters or the condo buildings, nonetheless feels like a final thumb in the eye to those of us who still enjoyed the place and the last vestiges of what it used to be. If charging people $1 an hour to park on the street on nights and weekends is progress, they can keep it.
I don’t mean to sound too dramatic, but I think it really sucks.
David Franks –
I don’t think $1 an hour at night for a spot on the street is reasonable. Over the course of a year, it will add up to a lot of money. And speaking of changing subjects, wasn’t the original goal of paid parking to fund a deck? And the WAC subsidy was then tacked onto that?
robertocampana–
This thread appeared to me to have started with complaints about paid parking in general, then gone in the direction of complaining about the WAC subsidy, which is how I read your posts; I therefore took the post I responded so to as a change of subject. You are right, of course, about the WAC subsidy coming after the discussion of a parking deck.
I’ve seen a lot of things happen in Fayetteville that I thought came about at inopportune times or sucked in other ways. I might even have been right– in the short term. I thought they created a big vacuum by spending way too much money to make the exterior of the WAC ugly and the interior of it tacky. I thought it really sucked that the city, rather than addressing opposition to paving the whole WAC parking lot, sent construction equipment in at 6 AM one Saturday to obliterate any possibility of making part of it a park. (One of the city’s WAC expansion proposals would “restore” the underground stream.)
As it turns out, it’s still Fayetteville after all. Paid parking will suck for a while, and the business scene on Dickson will probably change some, then the city will tear up more streets and people will decide it’s worth a little parking money to stay downtown. Eventually, everything will settle down and it will still be Fayetteville. (Maybe the city’s plans for the second WAC expansion will restore free parking. There’s a precedent.)
From today’s NWA Times…
Blackwell works about 50 hours a week at Theo’s. He estimates paying full price for parking in the area could mount to nearly $200 a month.
[...]
“I’m going to go with the 90 percent discount parking,” said Dawn Crawford, a waitress at Common Grounds. “I don’t like paying for parking at all.”
Paying full price — a maximum of $5 per night — is not a cost Crawford wants to take on.
“That could work out to be about $140 a month,” said Crawford, 27. “And that’s a whole other monthly bill.”
Parking was fine on Dickson Street before this paid parking fiasco and we dont need a stupid parking garage . The only time that parking gets bad is on Saturdays for Arkansas football games and maybe some weekends after midnight. But that doesn’t mean we need a paid parking or parking garage which will never happen becuase the WAC will eventully move to Bentonville any ways.
Also I hear that the costs of removing the vandalism on the parking meters will be moved on to the tax payers what bunch of BS mayor Jordan .
Go to KWNA.com you can read about that crap as well.
You folks who keep screaming that the WAC is this elitist entity that has no value to our fair city are completely deluded. Art is important. Our city embraces this idea (thank God!). The type of quality productions the WAC brings in cost money. That’s a fact. It seems to me they do their best to keep patrons’ costs as low as possible. Not to mention the free or deeply discounted shows they provide to local schools and charities.
Sorry if this is getting off subject. It just riles me to read crap like the city “shakedown of people who don’t give a damn about the WAC” or “Wal-Mart funded art center, one that would almost never feature any rock and roll of any kind.” (@Urk – That’s not its purpose. Would it be better if it was Target funded?) If the WAC does relocate, I hope we pull together to reinvent the center and keep the arts a vibrant part of downtown.
EaNM–
What a delightful post!
The WAC isn’t moving to Bentonville. Henceforward, saying it is moving is not ignorant– it’s stupid. (I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt.)
And it makes a lot of sense to blame the mayor for vandalism. Your ability to muster that much sense is– well, delightful.
Thank you ever so much!
Ever in your debt, I remain
Delighted
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Comment removed.
EaNM–
As I read both of those publications, I am well aware that the WAC wishes to expand, and the Waltons want the expansion in Bentonville. I suspect that if the Waltons are unable to swing other major support to Bentonville, they will not pass up the opportunity to make sure that their name continues to dominate the facilities, even in Fayetteville. I am also aware that the Crystal Bridges deal to share art with Fisk University is not going well, which might affect the desirability of expanding near Crystal Bridges. And I am aware that there are other major donors who want the expansion to occur in Fayetteville, and that Fayetteville’s proposals for expansion pretty well blow all the others out of the water.
There is no reason for the mayor to come up with millions of dollars in the next six months. If the WAC expansion occurs in Fayetteville, most of the city’s contribution to the project are in-kind, and donors are ready to provide money. If, as you say, the WAC expands in Bentonville, there will be no need for millions of dollars, meaning that the mayor will be, apparently, personally responsible only for the vandalism.
Once again, you’ve delighted me.
@Elect – I may be a “freaken idiot”, but some people do care about the WAC and believe in the value of “artsy crap” to our community. One of us is way out of touch with the city of Fayetteville. Dear God, I hope it is you!
@EanM
I give a crap about the wac and the artsy crap. So Im not sure you speak for everyone in Fayetteville.
Uh-oh, the natives are getting restless…
City of Fayetteville
NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 20, 2010
Contact: (479) 587-3500
RE: INCREASED VANDALISM WITHIN THE ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICT
Fayetteville Police Chief Greg Tabor announced today the Fayetteville Police Department has received a number of reports regarding criminal mischief in and around the Entertainment District since new parking enforcement efforts have been enacted.
Incidents of criminal mischief, including spray painting and other damage done to parking kiosks, have been documented within the last few days. These acts of vandalism are costly to tax-payers in both repairs and lost revenue. Damage from these recent incidents is estimated at approximately $15,000. Many of these individual acts could constitute a Felony and any individual arrested will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Damage to the essential equipment at these parking lots could result in the parking lot being closed and unavailable for public parking.
Revenue from the new paid parking program, which started on Monday, exists in certain areas of the Entertainment District and will go toward the building of a parking deck to benefit the public and businesses in the district.
Parking enforcement officers and volunteers will be working in the area and will be assisting patrons of the Entertainment District with the new paid parking program, with way-finding to pay stations and any other questions or issues which may arise.
Anyone witnessing acts of vandalism or with any information of past acts of vandalism is asked to call the Fayetteville Police Department at 587-3555.
George, I’m sure it’s not cheap to bring shows to the WAC but that is no excuse to subsidize it with tax payer money. I don’t see George’s getting city funding to bring in bands and they contribute more to the city IMO than the WAC does. If the WAC can’t pay for the shows they bring to town with current ticket prices and private donations they need to start increasing ticket prices and hitting up their donors for more money. Or they could re-evaluate the acts they book and start trying to reach a wider audience.
George- I think you misread the point of my post. I’m not anti-art (tho I prefer the livelier arts) and I’m not nearly as anti-WAC as I used to be. it’s an ugly, ugly building, it’s sheer size changed the scale of the street (for the worse IMHO) and much of the maneuvering that got it put into place in it’s current location was somewhere between hincky and outright criminal. But it’s also been good for the town in many, many ways. It’s provided work for lots of my friends who do stage, sound and lighting, and while the version of art that it offers the community is always on the safe side, they have brought some nice stuff. And it’s obviously helped the town and specifically the street’s economy, which has benefited both some people and institutions that I really love, and some real creeps and creepy institutions too. Change is a double edged sword, always.
My overall point is that for me, and I think others, paid parking on Dickson is small potatoes compared to some “non-Fayetteville” changes that have already taken place in Fayetteville. I don’t mean that as fatalistically as it sounds. My overall feeling here is very powerful ambivalence. I dearly, dearly miss Dickson street and the neighborhoods around it-especially the neighborhoods around it-as they were before the WAC was built. some of that is just sentimental and some of that is a recognition that something is lost when that kind of street culture is dispersed. The culture itself isn’t lost, it just doesn’t have that kind of geographic center and that changes alot of what’s possible. for me, alot of the time when I’m back in town, Fayetteville doesn’t feel “very Fayetteville” anymore, although it’s still a nice place and has many very cool things (the new library, the botanical garden, etc.) that the old one didn’t have. In the context of that feeling, Chris C.’s complaint that paid parking didn’t seem “very Fayetteville” reminded me that my own feeling of “fayettevilleness” was rooted in a specific place and time and the unrealized possibilities of that specific place and time. All of which is a very roundabout way of echoing David Franks’ point, that despite my personal attachments, I recognize that Fayetteville (or some version thereof) abides, and there will be new possibilities and likely new disappointments as well.
Would I prefer the WAC be Target funded? No, but I think that it is always, always, a good idea to keep patronage relationships present in the public eye and the public discourse. “Art” in public discourse is often taken to be free of financial forces, to be “cultural” instead of economic, as if the two were separate. Who pays for the space has to do with what gets held up as legitimate and prestigious art in the community. Keeping those relatinships front and center reminds us who is setting those standards and works against the kind of false assumptions that the term “Art” carries around with it.
And of course one of those assumptions,one that you (and many others) seem to take for granted, is that whatever “Art” is, it’s different from rock and roll, and someplace built to be an arts center won’t have much to do with rock and roll. That’s true of Dickson Street now, but the possibility of that not being true, of art being lively and sweaty and participatory is part of what I miss about Dickson Street then.
@Michael – I totally see where you’re coming from…we just have a difference of opinion. Subsidizing the arts center with both taxpayer and sponsorship money keeps ticket prices affordable for a much wider income range of people. Without which the WAC would more resemble the snooty country club as it is often portrayed.
@Urk – That’s way too reasonable. Could you please restate your opinion in the form of an irrational tirade like @Elect a new Mayor.
We probably see pretty eye-to-eye here actually. The building is an eyesore. Agreed. Corporate sponsorship of arts has its pros (lower ticket prices) and cons (corporate incluence).
I’ve lived in Fay off and on for quite a while now. I feel you on the de-Fayettevillization…especially of Dickson St (de-Dicksoning?). But I’ve felt the city making a comeback lately. I can’t say exactly why…the local music is better, unique restaurants & bars popping up, etc. Paid parking may hinder the comeback a bit. I don’t know, but it feels that way.
Oh and for the record, I love the noisy, sweaty, participatory art of a concert or festival. It’s my favorite art form!
Does anyone know the price to set up paid parking; parking people, painting the streets (which I dislike), machines to accept the money, etc.
@ Marian:
Here.
CoachIT – I think you mis-understood me. What money has the city come up with to establish this paid parking? Someone had to purchase the kiosks, hire new staff and give them a salary plus benefit package, cost of the paint and manpower to paint our beloved Dickson st. I would think it might take a year to recap the costs.
I haven’t seen any numbers for cost of additional staffing, but $500,000 – $800,000 has been tossed out for the cost of the equipment (kiosks, gates, etc) and installation.
This makes the 163rd comment on this story. It’s up to #2 in the “most commented” category. Still have a long way to go, though, to knock out #1 at 220 comments.
Keep up the good work people. ;)
Just my opinion. To which their own everyone has the right.
I thought we were in a budget crunch. I would like to see the money going to repairing some our main streets. I would also like to see something done about the backs of the buildings overlooking the parking lot on College and Mountain. Peeling gray paint covering several buildings is not the way I would like for new folks to judge Fayetteville on.
I can understand some areas being paid parking. Like the WAC parking lot and behind brewskis. The thing the really erks me is that all the spots on the street are paid. The ones by the post office, most all on lafayette. Why on this publc street do we need paid parking? I dont get it. Nut IO never claimed to be the sharpest tool in the shed. It still ticks me off.
That should be. But I’ve never claimed to be the sharpest tool in the shed. I have these banana hands that make it hard to type.
Dr. Henry McCoy–
Banana hands? What kind of doctor are you? Not a proctologist, I hope.
Told you so…
From the 9-17-2010 NWA Times
Yeah, it would appear that according to the NWA Times article, this is not helping keep Fayetteville Funky, or encouraging people to “Get it in Fay”.