Parking Issues Dominate Town Council Meeting
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
WINONA LAKE - Parking, or the lack of space for it, was before the Winona Lake Town Council Wednesday.
A representative from the Free Methodist Church asked to have a Nov. 9 decision prohibiting parking on the inside of Ninth Street Boulevard reconsidered.
Joe Beeson, from the church board, said when the boulevard was constructed, Town Council President Brent Wilcoxson assured the board at a May 11, 1998, meeting their congregation would have ample parking along the edge of the outside of the street and along the median strip that was constructed.
The council reversed that decision last month after Town Marshal Malcolm Gilbert expressed his concern that safety vehicles couldn't navigate the street when parking along the outside of the street and median strip was maximized.
""It appears that we have lost 14 spaces - with parking as tough as it is in this town - and we'd like to have the board's decision reconsidered," Beeson said.
Gilbert told the board if church members would park close enough to the curb, the problem wouldn't exist.
"If people would park no more than 6 inches from the curbs on both the inside and outside, there wouldn't be a problem," he said. "But, that's not happening."
Street Superintendent Kim Endicott said another option would be for the town to vacate 10th Street, which dissects the church's property, and allow them to park there.
The council voted to table the issue to allow the church board to consider the 10th Street proposal.
On another parking issue, the council also voted to return to the Winona Lake Plan Commission a proposal to establish a snow emergency parking plan on Second through Sixth streets; 11th and 12th streets; 14th and 15th streets; Auditorium and Administration boulevards; and East and West Canal streets.
The plan, designed to make snow removal more efficient, called for no parking on the even sides of the streets on even days and odd sides of the streets on odd days for the months of January and February.
Louis Milos, of 111 Third Street, said the plan would unfairly inconvenience residents, because there were not enough parking spaces on just one side of the street to accommodate all the cars.
"It's not fair to have us park in front of someone else's home, if we could find a parking space at all," he said.
In other business, the council voted to award G&G Hauling and Excavating the sewer project in the allies between Second and Third, Third and Fourth and 10th and 11th streets. All the allies connect the sewer lines on Rupp Drive and Chestnut Street to the sewer line on College Avenue.
G&G was the lowest bidder at $52,186.
The council also voted to reappoint Roger Gelbaugh as fire chief for 2000. Assistant chiefs approved were Mike Cox, Ed Brown and Kip Shuter.
Members of the Winona Lake Town Council are Wilcoxson; Harold Dunn; Edna Gamble; Randy Ruppel; and Dick Taylor. [[In-content Ad]]
WINONA LAKE - Parking, or the lack of space for it, was before the Winona Lake Town Council Wednesday.
A representative from the Free Methodist Church asked to have a Nov. 9 decision prohibiting parking on the inside of Ninth Street Boulevard reconsidered.
Joe Beeson, from the church board, said when the boulevard was constructed, Town Council President Brent Wilcoxson assured the board at a May 11, 1998, meeting their congregation would have ample parking along the edge of the outside of the street and along the median strip that was constructed.
The council reversed that decision last month after Town Marshal Malcolm Gilbert expressed his concern that safety vehicles couldn't navigate the street when parking along the outside of the street and median strip was maximized.
""It appears that we have lost 14 spaces - with parking as tough as it is in this town - and we'd like to have the board's decision reconsidered," Beeson said.
Gilbert told the board if church members would park close enough to the curb, the problem wouldn't exist.
"If people would park no more than 6 inches from the curbs on both the inside and outside, there wouldn't be a problem," he said. "But, that's not happening."
Street Superintendent Kim Endicott said another option would be for the town to vacate 10th Street, which dissects the church's property, and allow them to park there.
The council voted to table the issue to allow the church board to consider the 10th Street proposal.
On another parking issue, the council also voted to return to the Winona Lake Plan Commission a proposal to establish a snow emergency parking plan on Second through Sixth streets; 11th and 12th streets; 14th and 15th streets; Auditorium and Administration boulevards; and East and West Canal streets.
The plan, designed to make snow removal more efficient, called for no parking on the even sides of the streets on even days and odd sides of the streets on odd days for the months of January and February.
Louis Milos, of 111 Third Street, said the plan would unfairly inconvenience residents, because there were not enough parking spaces on just one side of the street to accommodate all the cars.
"It's not fair to have us park in front of someone else's home, if we could find a parking space at all," he said.
In other business, the council voted to award G&G Hauling and Excavating the sewer project in the allies between Second and Third, Third and Fourth and 10th and 11th streets. All the allies connect the sewer lines on Rupp Drive and Chestnut Street to the sewer line on College Avenue.
G&G was the lowest bidder at $52,186.
The council also voted to reappoint Roger Gelbaugh as fire chief for 2000. Assistant chiefs approved were Mike Cox, Ed Brown and Kip Shuter.
Members of the Winona Lake Town Council are Wilcoxson; Harold Dunn; Edna Gamble; Randy Ruppel; and Dick Taylor. [[In-content Ad]]