downtown parking woes ease

Last night the Traffic, Safety and Parking Commission held a public meeting to reveiw the downtown parking study conducted by consultants Wilbur Smith and Associates. Those in attendance learned that the news is not all bad. In fact, it is encouraging. The report concluded that downtown Burlingame is headed in the right direction. Over the last several years, parking behavior has slowly begun to change. More people are now aware of the free lots and are aware that the farther you park from the high demand area of Burlingame Avenue, the more inexpensive it is to park. The results of the study show that there is now a higher turnover in the core Burlingame Avenue area than there was in 2002. I am encouraged by these results and hope that the TSP Commission and staff will strive to further this change in behavior to make the downtown area an even more pleasurable experience.

- Written by Russ Cohen

Comments

[Jenn]

I think that news is great.The last think this city can afford is a massive parking structure. There is lots of room for improvement, though. I'd like to see the system of rates that is more understandable and logical. I know the city would like longterm parking to occur farthest from the center. That is fine. But there are several areas in between, that seem to be all having different time limits. It is very hard to understand why certain meters have time limits (sometimes not even posted) and certain others are fine for 2 hours. This should be part of the signage that I hope will someday occur. Also, so many of the meters are faulty. The city asks that we call and report the meter numbers, which I do, but I still don't get my money back!! Sure, a quarter here and there isn't much, but by now, I have lost about $5. It might make people NOT want to come to Burlingame to shop. Russ, you are doing a great job, but maybe your commission can look at having a more reliable, systematic metering program that people can predict.

[Gerald]

I'd like to see a few more short term meters on both Broadway and Burlingame Ave. Not too many, but a couple of more on each side of the street on each block. This would really encourage more turnover and serve better those businesses where customers dash in and cash out.

Better signage directing motorists to nearby parking options would also be an enhancement. Having these signs designed with some sort of Burlingame logo would also be nice.

You will always hear people (the locals especially) complain about the lack of parking. That's simply because everyone expects to park right in front of the place they're patronizing and the idea of walking a block is a totally foreign concept.
Our neighborhood customers always voice the biggest complaints in this regard, while those coming from San Francisco, the East Bay, San Jose or Sacramento have invested enough energy in making their way to our location, that a block or two's distance is minimal.

[Fiona]

I am glad that a speaker brought up all those empty spaces by the Jules Francard Grove (next to the Caltrains tracks on California Drive) with the ugly green fenced off city property on California.

It seems that parking lot could be better utilized and the white shuttle (?) to take people from there to Burlingame Avenue (although it is not really too far to walk!)

[Bruce]

We need to repave the road...our road suck.

Just drive the Avenue or Broadway and you know what I mean!

[al]

There is no parking problem in Burlingame except on some of the really narrow side residential streets. If a fire truck has trouble getting by, that's a real problem. Otherwise, there is always parking on Broadway and Burlingame Ave., it's just a matter of walking a bit further. This whole thing is a long-running farce put forth by the likes of Harrison, Lembi, Osterling, Auran, Galligan, and now the DBID naysayers lead by Cordair who has never had an opinion on anything before. Time to get real. Go try to park in North Beach, SoMa or University Ave in PA then you will know what a parking problem is like.

[Constance]

I wonder why the meter maids start to ticket at 8a instead of 9a. Wouldn't it be a bit friendlier to visitors and residents if they waited one more hour? I have personally seen meter maids give tickets at 8:05 a. With the exception of coffee shops and bagel/pastry places, most stores on Burlingame and Broadway Avenues do not open until 9 or 10. Likewise, how about stop giving tickets at 5p instead of 6p. Most other towns enforce a 9-5 parking meter. It appears Burlingame wants to cash in on these two extra hours and that is not friendly to people who want to shop in Burlingame.