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Homeowners Endorse Parking Permit Program

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By JAMIE PILARCZYK

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 20, 2008

COURIER CITY/OSCAWANA - The debate grew heated as frustrated residents backed a plan to solve their parking woes.

Tired of dealing with drunks drifting out of SoHo's bars and restaurants and onto their streets, residents want businesses to take more responsibility for parking.

"Don't push this problem on us," said an emotional Dorothy Adams, adding that beer bottles have been thrown at her while heading to her Westland Avenue home.

At its meeting Aug. 11, the Courier City/Oscawana Resident Homeowners Association voted 34-14 in favor of a proposed residential parking permit program. The proposal must be approved by the city council and could take effect by December, said Jonathan Scott, a traffic studies engineer.

The program is similar to ones implemented in Ybor City and the Channel District and is based on a comprehensive parking plan the association submitted. It would cover an area generally bordered by Kennedy Boulevard, Azeele Street and Fremont, Swann, Armenia and Howard avenues.

The plan provides for 454 spaces.

City parking manager Jim Corbett said there are about 700 residences in the targeted area. A parking enforcement specialist would be assigned who "does nothing but write citations," he said.

Only permit holders could park in portions of the area from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Parking would be prohibited in other portions, with a few two-hour parking spaces available on Azeele and Howard.

The city also is considering reducing Platt Street to two lanes and using the third lane for parking, public works director Tony Rodriguez said.

"This is a start," Tampa Assistant Fire Marshal Geoff Brown said. "There are a multitude of times when the fire engines have to park blocks away. It's a safety issue."

Each residence would be issued one residential permit and one guest permit. Two residential permits would be provided if no off-street parking is assigned to that address.

The permits are free. Additional guest passes would cost $3 a day.

The plan would allow for changes as kinks are worked out, officials said, and homeowners association members will form a traffic committee to address issues.

Justin Hofford, who has lived near Westland Avenue and Horatio Street for two years, criticized the proposal.

"Where are my friends going to park?" he said.

Hofford said a better plan would be to offer tax credits to encourage the nearby Sweetbay and soon-to-open Publix grocery stores to allow nighttime parking in their lots and garage.

Tommy Ortiz said the permit program is needed to prompt patrons to use the free valet service at his businesses: Cheap, 309 S. Howard Ave.; Hyde Park Cafe, 1806 W. Platt St.; The Kennedy, 2408 W. Kennedy Blvd.; and Taqueria Quetzalcoatl, 402 S. Howard Ave.

"We have 1,000 spaces from Howard to The Kennedy to Hyde Park Cafe and we're maybe 50 percent full," Ortiz said. "We're never going to get people to park in our lots without this plan."

City Councilman John Dingfelder said the council has tried to be more sensitive to wet-zoning requests in SoHo and recently declined a petition by The Lime, 915 S. Howard Ave., for extended hours.

"I think we should have a greater mix of uses along Howard but it's not something council can mandate," he said.

As for calls for the city to build a parking garage, budget cuts make that unlikely.

"I would love to see us going into this with an open mind," Dingfelder said of the permit plan. "I think you should try it. If you wait for a parking garage to get built, we'll still be here 20 years from now."

Reporter Jamie Pilarczyk can be reached at (813) 259-7661 or jpilarczyk@tampatrib.com.

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