City council continues to wrestle with downtown parking issues

Saturday, February 13, 2010

by Brian S. Orban

The Mountain Home City Council continued outlining problems with downtown parking while debating ways to resolve the issue during a special meeting Feb. 5.

The meeting follows discussions last month on whether the city should modify its current parking ordinance or squeeze in more on-street parking, specifically within a three-block radius downtown.

Mayor Tom Rist acknowledged problems with this law, calling it "restrictive" as it pertains to the downtown overlay area.

"When the downtown area was built, it was a much different world," the mayor said. "We're trying to fit the 21st century into an area built in the 19th century," the mayor said.

For more information on this and other stories, see this week's edition of the Mountain Home News.

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Isn't that what the El Rancho parking lot was for, to have more parking for the downtown area?

-- Posted by airforcewive on Tue, Feb 16, 2010, at 7:25 AM
I am an "older" woman and I can walk several blocks at a time. Mt Home is not that large. Get out of your car and walk a little. There is plenty of parking.

-- Posted by Hazel36 on Wed, Feb 17, 2010, at 3:04 PM
Here, here Hazel. I agree. But with all of the obest and unfit people in this city. The city can not afford or handle the emergency calls their going to receive requesting ambulance service for some overweight, out of shaping person past out on the sidewalk. I don't understand what the problem is with the city council with this parking issue. In the twenty years living here, I have never had a problem finding a parking space in town. In the middle of town, we have an empty building that no one will use, due to the current policies. (The old King's building). Why doesn't the city purchase the building/lot. Tear down the building, since it has to be torn down anyway, and place a parking lot in it's place. That seems like a win/win for everyone. Unless there's a city ordance against it?

-- Posted by GFYS69 on Thu, Feb 18, 2010, at 2:31 AM

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