Parking on portion of Musser may be regulated

A citizens panel decided Wednesday to let Carson City traffic specialists determine whether placing time limits on parking along a portion of West Musser Street is feasible.

The Redevelopment Authority Citizens Committee heard from downtown business owners about the idea of enforcing two-hour parking limits along Musser between Division and Carson streets.

The city "should consider all the parking it controls as a very important asset," said Michael Robbins, owner of Hanifin's Art and Antiques, 210 N. Carson St. "I think we'd want to present our tourists and shoppers with easier parking."

Robbins says people working in state buildings and other nearby businesses are taking away parking from his and neighboring businesses because the vehicles aren't move during the day. He put together a report containing supporting information about time-limited parking areas in commercial sections of cities in California, Oregon and Washington state.

"It's not necessary," said Jed Block, a member of the committee and president of State Agent and Transfer Syndicate Inc., a business in the 100 block of North Curry Street.

Block said he has monitored the area to see whether there was a lack of parking, and he contends there is enough to serve the businesses because plenty of vehicles come and go.

More than two dozen downtown merchants signed a petition in the spring asking the city to consider time-limited parking from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The state pays for three spaces near the corner of Carson and Musser streets, next to the Secretary of State's Office. That arrangement won't be affected by any changes enacted on Musser.

There are fewer than 500 spaces in the downtown area - from Fourth and Washington streets to Curry and Plaza streets - on which the city focuses its parking rules enforcement efforts. Much of the on-street parking already is time-limited there. More than 400 spaces limit parking to two hours.

Musser Street parking was discussed by the Board of Supervisors in May, who then asked the committee to consider it. The idea could be brought back to the supervisors - if it's decided that it might be feasible, said Supervisor Robin Williamson, who is also on the committee.

While one city survey suggests there are enough spaces throughout downtown now to serve the area, location of the spaces has been a longtime struggle. More will be needed, however, if plans for improving the business climate come to fruition.

A possible short-term solution could be to add directional signs that help drivers find parking areas more easily, Block and Williamson have suggested.

• Contact reporter Terri Harber at tharber @nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111, ext. 215.