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PARKING “DEBACLE” CONTINUES
The parking nightmare, entirely created by the current leadership of the City of Lake Geneva, reaches out and back. It reaches out to the citizenry, visitors, and anybody else seeking to park in downtown Lake Geneva after February 1st of this year. It reaches back, or will reach back, to touch each and every one of the leaders who either voted to impose this huge debacle of an increase or approved of it after it was voted in. Lake Geneva, like all other governmental organizations running towns, villages, and cities across the country, not to mention states and the federal government itself, are governed by representatives elected by the people. Those voters, once having voted, are generally limited to enduring or supporting the representatives elected to supposedly represent them.
What happens, many times, and this parking situation is a great example of this, is that the local representatives lose sight, hearing, or comprehension of what the people who elected them might want or even accept.
Such is the case, at least in the studied opinion of the staff at the Geneva Shore Report. Seldom has a single issue (think Hillmoor, the parking structure that failed, Big Foot Beach or Wrigley Boulevard closure) ignited the community with such passion. Following a huge increase for city staff members, catapulting many of them into six figure positions (with benefits) from mid-five figure incomes, the fictitiously created budget (which is not total revenue) was determined to fall short of prior approval. Something had to be done and parking and parking fine fees were chosen to be the avenues in which this deliberately created shortfall would be handled. There is nothing in any of the parking mess about whether city workers deserved the long-awaited increases they received or not. The city is very blessed in having such a great, friendly, and thorough staff.
The GSR argument, previously written was all about how that staff and those increases should have been properly budgeted beforehand and how the revenue to cover those very necessary increases should have been generated from something other than the passage of increases that stun the public and anger just about everyone…and they haven’t even gone into effect yet. The anger that will result when regular people, not wealthy visitors, get hit with a fifty-dollar ticket that’s going to balloon ten days later if not paid, or if unpaid result in an inability to register a motor vehicle is going to skyrocket. The public works committee met on Monday night to discuss special parking for employees of Lake Geneva’s businesses.
The results of that meeting were non-existent really. The committee decided that employees could not be given stickers to allow them to park at a discount or for free because then employees would all park right in front of the places they worked, thereby denying the ability of customers to do so. Parking Lot “I” was discussed as a potential for 34 employees to park for free up near McDonalds four to five blocks from the downtown area, but that lot only has 34 slots. That suggestion was forwarded to the finance committee for further study.
The mayor, meanwhile, indicated in person that she never stated, ‘Lake Geneva has enough visitors and can’t handle anymore.” The GSR is retracting that alleged statement. The staff believes the mayor. She went on to state, after desiring a retraction (which this certainly is) that “60,000 visitors will be coming to Winterfest and that the city cannot handle that many.” That statement was made by the mayor, in her office, at 4:46 p.m. on Monday night to the managing editor of the GSR. The GSR supports the mayor, but it would be much better if she went against this whole parking scheme and restarted work on coming up with a better solution to the current financial ‘crisis.’
Nevertheless, the GSR retracts and should have spoken to the mayor directly before printing.
Such an increase in the Parking will discourage people who are on a limited budget to visit LG. Also, those who come to LG with family, children and/ or friends will be discouraged and not shop, visit the lakefront or dine at the many restaurants. This will definitely decrease revenue for all the businesses.
Be sure to let your feelings be known to your elected Council Members and share with neighbors
The businesses downtown can’t stay in business if employee’s can’t find affordable parking for what is probably a minimum wage job.
If they use the parking lot on Well’s Street, it should be free, and the city, for a nominal fee, should offer a shuttle service to drop them off and pick them up from the downtown area at designated times. We manage to shuttle the tourists, so why not people who work here? Perhaps there are other large, but underused lots or parking spots that employees could be shuttled back and forth from. They would need a special sticker for business hours only.
It could help local businesses attract quality help. I think the city must develop a plan for downtown workers. They bring in thousands of tourists and brag about all the amenities of the downtown area, but in the eight years I have lived here, I have seen many businesses leave, and I have also heard the city leaders say we must support the downtown businesses, so let’s support them.
I think residents should also be able to have reduced parking fees (free would be better) and charge tourists $5.00 an hour; they will pay it.
Good Points and thank you for the input on Downtown Parking, J.
I’ve been a resident of Twin Lakes since 1973 and love visiting Lake Geneva and even worked at the Playboy club.
I have Grandchildren in the school system.
I can’t afford the $4.00 an hour to park and WILL NOT pay $5.00 an hour!
We agree. Remember to always voice your opinion.
The residents of Lake Geneva should not have to pay for “parking structures” for the downtown businesses at a cost of $12 million per structure. The few residents shop at the downtown. Let the BID pay.