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City needs to construct new garage

To put a positive spin on the parking woes in Portsmouth, the city is gifted to have such demand and there is still time to act to ensure the downtown remains accessible enough to be fully attractive to residents and visitors.

With that said, it must be noted what a disaster it was for five city councilors to vote to end any discussion of a new garage at the Worth lot. For the record, they were Esther Kennedy, Nancy Novelline Clayburgh, Ken Smith, Jack Thorsen and Assistant Mayor Bob Lister. The motion to restrict a comprehensive discussion was led by the assistant mayor.

The existing parking garage, by the way, filled again this past Saturday. The extent of closures is spreading throughout the year and now includes the majority of Friday and Saturday evenings.

It's great that the city is so attractive that its existing garage fills weekend after weekend. However, when the garage fills, it means virtually all on-street parking is filled as well. One too many dinner reservations missed because patrons can't find parking, and you'll begin to see those consumers seek other, easier options.

It must be noted once more that the elimination of 200 long-term public parking spaces at Portwalk, effective Tuesday, just worsened the problem.

The extent of dysfunction in the process to site and build a necessary second parking garage is the problem. Lister should have allowed the process to move forward so the best decision could be made. Instead, he stuck a finger in the air and followed the complaints of a handful of businesses.

The opposition to the Worth lot site came largely from a few businesses that have seemingly come to think of the Worth lot as their own quasi-private parking. Their concerns, while valid, should have been part of ongoing discussions that should have pointed out how the nearby Bridge Street lot would provide parking that is as convenient.

To make matters worse, some 60 downtown businesspeople provided letters of support for a second parking garage, and among them many supported the Worth lot plan. Aren't these businesses as important? Don't their opinions matter? They should have spoken up sooner and more vocally. Maybe their letters were that effort, but Lister and the other four councilors killed the process.

Copies of the letters were handed out to the council by Mayor Eric Spear on Monday night. Spear, who voted against the motion to discontinue talks on the Worth lot, said the packet of letters was e-mailed to him shortly before the last council meeting but they were not handed out because they were not received in time.

Nonetheless, the city councilors, businesses and residents have to refocus on a growing problem. By encouraging development, the city has outgrown its current parking supply. Perhaps during the support of redevelopment across the city, someone should have understood that it would increase demand for parking.

The city is trying to make do with a parking supply that was sufficient more than a decade ago — when the city expanded the High-Hanover garage in 2000. The problem is when you consider all the new buildings since then.

Think Portwalk, 18 Congress St., the Martingale Wharf on Bow Street, Steve Kelm's building on Islington Street. Think about the pending developments in the North End. Think about the redevelopment of the Connie Bean Community Center and the McIntyre block. Then think about where all those people will park.

And think, honestly, whether downtown is so special that it can ask patrons and employees to park somewhere outside of the downtown and ride a trolley in. Ask how realistic that is. Look at current trolleys that link the downtown to Pease and the Parking Transportation Center. Are they full? Can you force people to ride the trolley?

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