Community Corner
City Responds To Your Parking Gripes - Part 2
Evanston officials tackle some of your biggest parking hassles, and explain how to petition for change in your neighborhood.
On Monday, to readers' gripes and questions about parking in Evanston. (Posted in the comments section on two columns, and ).
Today, I'd like to share the rest of the answers from city officials Rickey Voss (Division Manager, Parking & Revenue) and Marty Lyons (Assistant City Manager / Chief Financial Officer).
A note to readers—I have edited the questions, concerns and answers for length, grammar, spelling and clarity. Here’s the first half of the city’s responses to readers; please check back tomorrow for the rest.
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Q&A With The City of Evanston On Parking - Part 2
Q: Will protected bike lanes be installed on Central Street in addition to the ones ?
A: [According to Lyons, this answer is forthcoming]
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Q: What really ticks me off is the moving of my car twice a week EVERY week in my neighborhood. Seriously? They can't plan one or two days a month and then post a sign?
A: We will assume that your reference to moving your vehicle every week is regarding the City of Evanston’s street sweeping program. The program is designed to eliminate the need and the expense of Public Works staff to post signs in different locations throughout the city on any given day. The signs reflect the days of enforcement but Public Works provides a schedule that you can follow so you only need to move your vehicle on dates reflected in the schedule. If you go on the City of Evanston web page and open the Resident tab, scroll down to parking, open the tab and you will find a tab for the street sweeping schedules. Once opened you will locate a schedule for each sweeping district and the dates the area will be swept. By following this schedule you will only need to move your vehicle on the dates listed for your area.
Q: What bothers me is that while I pay for a residential permit in my Central Street area block, it is good for 7-9 A.M. only, while every other residential district near a business district in Evanston limits non-residents to two hour parking.
A: The Transportation and Parking Committee as well as the Ward Alderman continually review parking issues with businesses and residents. In the event that any group or individual wants to have parking regulations changed they may contact the Parking Manager at 847.448.8292 or may contact their Ward Alderman. They may also simply dial 311 or access the 311 system on the City’s web-site to place their request.
Q: This parking enforcement group should be given the job of cleaning up the gangs because they are ruthless. I'm sitting in an alley next to my apartment building where I have lived for 34 years, my car is running and I am waiting for my wife when A-ticket the Hun comes up behind me and points to the sign that says No Parking. My feeble attempt at explaining that I wasn't parked but waiting was to no avail. Finally I told him that I knew the city needed the money so go ahead and give me the ticket. That’s when he went furious.
A: To ensure that we are aware of any negative interaction with enforcement staff there is a complaint process if a resident feels that a Parking Enforcement Officer is anything but professional. If used correctly management staff can work on taking the appropriate action to correct behavior. The City encourages anyone who has a complaint as to the professionalism or inappropriate behavior of an enforcement officer by contacting the Parking Enforcement Coordinator at 847.448.8116.
Q: I am a lifelong North Shore resident who used to enjoy coming to Evanston for the day. But the cost of parking and parking restrictions has driven me away. The last time I spent the better part of the day looking at my watch to make sure my meter did not run out. The city should consider alternate methods of earning revenue, or at the least have a weekday or two of free parking.
A: Parking programs are designed to regulate parking and traffic flow to insure that customer turnover, over parking by business employees, students and commuters does not adversely affect the business districts and residential neighborhoods within the city. Parking turnover in the business districts is extremely critical to the success of any business.
The cost of parking is covered in many ways either by meter, restricted zones, parking garages and other methods (zoned, etc). Areas that provide “free” parking must offset the cost in one manner or another. Shopping centers that have multi-million dollar parking decks need to pass those costs on.
